Cited by 56Stress and Burnout ResearchWorkplace Health and Well-beingMedical Practices and Rehabilitation

Role of rehabilitation in chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder: A narrative review

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Wallensten, J, Åsberg, M, Wiklander, M, Nager, A·2019·Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine

Abstract

There has been an increase in cases of sick leave due to stress in several European countries in recent decades.Chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder is linked with physiological and neurobiological changes, which may add to cognitive problems and long-term exhaustion.This narrative review summarizes the published evidence about the effectiveness of different interventions for the rehabilitation of patients with chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder.Cognitive behavioural interventions and multimodal interventions reduce symptoms.Workplace interventions often improve return to work.Better sleep is associated with improvement of symptoms and return to work.Interventions for improving sleep might therefore be important.For improving cognitive function, which is a main complaint among patients with chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder, aerobic and cognitive training may have some effect.Most interventions for the rehabilitation of chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder have only marginal effects.Therefore, it is important to prevent the onset of this disorder.Objective: An increase in numbers of cases of sick leave due to stress have been reported from several European countries during recent decades.Chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder is associated with physiological and neurobiological perturbations that may contribute to cognitive problems and longterm exhaustion.Rehabilitation of patients with chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder is therefore challenging.This narrative review summarizes the evidence regarding the effectiveness of different interventions for the rehabilitation of patients with chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder.Methods: Both structured and unstructured searches of research studies and reports were performed in order to find knowledge sources.The structured search had 2 predefined inclusion criteria: (i) chronic stress-induced exhaustion/clinical burnout/severe burnout/stress-induced exhaustion; and (ii) rehabilitation with improvement of symptoms and/or return to work as outcomes.Results: Cognitive behavioural interventions and multimodal interventions seem to reduce symptoms.Workplace interventions, either work-focused cognitive behavioural or workplace dialogue, seem to improve return to work.Sleep is important for both symptom improvement and return to work, and interventions for improving sleep might therefore be important.For improvement of cognitive function, which is a main complaint among patients with chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder, aerobic and cognitive training may have some effect.Conclusion: In summary, the few studies of highquality that examine interventions for rehabilitation of chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder show only marginal effects.Thus, it is important to prevent the onset of chronic stress-induced exhaustion disorder.

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  • In other countries, terms such as work-related neurasthenia, "work-related depression," "adjustment disorder," and "somatization syndrome" are used interchangeably to describe clinical burnout/ENTS.

    “and in other countries, terms such as work-related neurasthenia, “work-related depression,” “adjustment disorder,” and “somatization syndrome” are used interchangeably to describe clinical burnout/ENTS [15].”

    From Psychological Treatment of Exhaustion Due to Persistent Non-Traumatic Stress: A Scoping Review. (2024) · cites this paper as [15]

    The 'Definition of chronic stress-induced exhaustion' section says nomenclature differs across countries and identifies job stress-related depression and possibly neurasthenia as equivalents to SED; it also says SED is often subsumed under adjustment disorder. It does not identify 'somatization syndrome' as an equivalent, and its qualifications do not support saying all these terms are used interchangeably. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • In Sweden, the diagnosis of exhaustion disorder has been accepted into the Swedish ICD-10.

    “In Sweden, the diagnosis of exhaustion disorder has been accepted into the Swedish ICD-10, and in other countries, terms such as work-related neurasthenia, “work-related depression,” “adjustment disorder,” and “somatization syndrome” are used interchangeably to describe clinical burnout/ENTS [15].”
  • The cardinal symptoms of ENTS include substantial debilitating levels of exhaustion coupled with cognitive impairments, but not necessarily a depressed mood.

    “The cardinal symptoms of ENTS include substantial debilitating levels of exhaustion coupled with cognitive impairments, but not necessarily a depressed mood [15].”

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Research works printed but not linked: 7

  1. European P, Rehabilitation Medicine Bodies A. White Book on Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (PRM) in Europe. Chapter 1. Definitions and concepts of PRM. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med 2018; 54: 156-165.
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Authors
Wallensten, J., Åsberg, M., Wiklander, M., & Nager, A.
Affiliations
  • Danderyds sjukhus (SE)
  • Karolinska Institutet (SE)
Corresponding author
Wallensten, J
Venue
Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine
Published
2019
Volume
51
Issue
5
Pages
331-342
ISSN
1650-1977 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2921761261
Cited by
56
References
83
Citations by year
2025: 9 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 7
FWCI
0.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Stress and Burnout Research
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Workplace Health and Well-being
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation › Medical Practices and Rehabilitation
Keywords
burnout, rehabilitation therapy, sick leave, return to work, workplace interventions, cognitive-behavioural intervention, multimodal intervention, sleep interventions, cognitive function, aerobic exercise, cognitive training, burnout prevention
MeSH terms
Adult, Chronic Disease, Fatigue, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Stress, Physiological, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

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