Burnout, Secondary Traumatic Stress and Inflammatory Biomarkers in ICU Healthcare Workers

April 20, 2026 updated by: Sait Fatih Öner, Elazıg Fethi Sekin Sehir Hastanesi

Relationship Between Burnout, Secondary Traumatic Stress, and Inflammatory Biomarkers in Intensive Care Unit Healthcare Workers

Healthcare professionals working in intensive care units (ICUs) are frequently exposed to high levels of psychological stress due to critically ill patients, frequent encounters with death, complex clinical decision-making, and prolonged working hours. This environment increases the risk of burnout and secondary traumatic stress, which may not only affect mental well-being but also have measurable physiological consequences.

Emerging evidence suggests that chronic psychological stress and burnout may influence immune function through activation of proinflammatory pathways. Elevated levels of inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) have been associated with stress-related conditions. However, data examining the relationship between burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and inflammatory biomarkers in intensive care healthcare workers remain limited.

This cross-sectional observational study aims to investigate the association between burnout and secondary traumatic stress levels, assessed using validated psychometric instruments (Maslach Burnout Inventory and Professional Quality of Life Scale), and inflammatory biomarkers (CRP, IL-6, TNF-α, and NLR) in ICU healthcare workers. Blood samples will be obtained in conjunction with routine annual health screening, and additional serum samples will be collected for biomarker analysis. The study seeks to clarify the psychoneuroimmunological mechanisms underlying occupational stress in critical care settings.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

140

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Elâzığ
      • Elâzığ, Elâzığ, Turkey (Türkiye), 23100
        • Fethi Sekin City Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The study population consists of healthcare professionals working in intensive care units (anesthesia, internal medicine, and chest diseases ICUs) at Elazığ Fethi Sekin City Hospital. Participants include physicians, nurses, anesthesia technicians, and other healthcare staff who are actively involved in the care of critically ill patients. All participants are adults undergoing routine annual occupational health screening and voluntarily agree to participate in the study.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age ≥18 years

Active employment in an intensive care unit (anesthesia, internal medicine, or chest diseases ICU)

Participation in routine annual occupational health screening

Willingness to provide additional blood sample for research purposes

Voluntary participation with written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Active infection at the time of assessment

Use of systemic steroids, immunosuppressive agents, or chemotherapy within the last 4 weeks

Known autoimmune or rheumatologic disease

Hematologic malignancy or severe hematologic disorder

Pregnancy

Refusal to provide additional blood sample

Incomplete questionnaire data

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Intervention / Treatment
ICU Healthcare Workers
Healthcare professionals aged 18 years and older working in intensive care units (anesthesia, internal medicine, and chest diseases ICUs) who voluntarily participate in the study. Participants will complete validated psychometric scales assessing burnout and secondary traumatic stress, and blood samples will be collected for inflammatory biomarker analysis.
Other: Psychometric Assessment and Blood Sampling
Administration of validated burnout and secondary traumatic stress questionnaires and collection of blood samples for inflammatory biomarker analysis. No therapeutic or clinical intervention is performed.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Association Between Burnout Levels and Inflammatory Biomarkers
Time Frame: At the time of assessment (single time point)
Evaluation of the relationship between Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS) total and subscale scores and inflammatory biomarker levels (CRP, IL-6, TNF-α, and NLR) using correlation and multivariable linear regression analysis.
At the time of assessment (single time point)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Elazıg Fethi Sekin Sehir Hastanesi

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

February 23, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

March 1, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

March 10, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 22, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 22, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

February 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 23, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 20, 2026

Last Verified

April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • EFSH-ICU-STRESS-2026-22-35

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Inflammation

Clinical Trials on Psychometric Assessment and Blood Sampling

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

CROs by country

CROs in Türkiye

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Subscribe