Factors associated with fatigue in a Family Medicine clinic in the United Arab Emirates

Results. Fatigue was more prevalent than in western studies (males 34.0%, females 38.2%). It was strongly associated with anxiety, especially in younger adults, and it has been recognized that rapid social change is felt most acutely in young adults and adolescents. Depression in females was also a factor. Lack of exercise, obesity and illiteracy played a minor role in the severity of fatigue. Conclusions. Fatigue appears to be a cultural ‘idiom of distress’, a way of expressing anxiety or depression in a rapidly changing society.