Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Sep;50(9):3000605221106428.
doi: 10.1177/03000605221106428.

Burnout phenomenon: neurophysiological factors, clinical features, and aspects of management

Razia A G Khammissa  1 , Simon Nemutandani  2 , Gal Feller  3 , Johan Lemmer  4 , Liviu Feller  2
Affiliations
Review

Burnout phenomenon: neurophysiological factors, clinical features, and aspects of management

Razia A G Khammissa et al. J Int Med Res. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Burnout syndrome is a distinct "occupational phenomenon" rather than a medical condition, comprising emotional exhaustion, physical fatigue, and cognitive weariness. Both exogenous work-related and endogenous personal factors determine the extent and the severity of symptoms in burnout syndrome. Persistent burnout is a cause of reduced quality of life and is associated with increased risk of sleep impairment and with several medical disorders including mild cognitive impairment, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.Active coping strategies promoting mental resilience and adaptive behavior, stress-reducing activities, improving work conditions, and reducing exposure to work stressors together may alleviate the distress of burnout and should be introduced early in the clinical course of burnout syndrome. The purpose of this review was to explain this complex and puzzling phenomenon and to describe burnout management.

Keywords: Burnout; cognitive behavioral therapy; cognitive weariness; emotional exhaustion; mental resilience; mindfulness.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interest: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Maslach C, Leiter MP. Understanding the burnout experience: recent research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry 2016; 15: 103–111. DOI: 10.1002/wps.20311. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Shirom A, Melamed S. A comparison of the construct validity of two burnout measures in two groups of professionals. International Journal of Stress Management 2006; 13: 176.
    1. Bianchi R, Schonfeld IS. Burnout is associated with a depressive cognitive style. Personality and Individual Differences 2016; 100: 1–5.
    1. Hobfoll SE, Shirom A, Golembiewski R. Conservation of resources theory. In: Handbook of Organizational Behavior, RT Golembiewski (ed), Marcel Dekker, New York 2000: 57–80.
    1. Toker S, Melamed S, Berliner S, et al.. Burnout and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease: A Prospective Study of 8838 Employees. Psychosom Med 2012; 74: 840–847. DOI: 10.1097/PSY.0b013e31826c3174. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources