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Djokovic improved to 8-1 on clay this season and 25-5 overall. At the Monte Carlo Masters last month, Djokovic retired from his semifinal match with Federer due to strep throat.
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The Serb showed no signs of sickness this week, although many other players did.
Both Djokovic and Wawrinka advanced to the final when their semifinal opponents retired. First, Andy Roddick pulled out with a back problem against Wawrinka, then Stepanek quit with apparent heat stroke against Djokovic.
Djokovic's quarterfinal opponent, Nicolas Almagro, also withdrew with a wrist problem.
Djokovic did not face a seeded player all week, registering wins against Steve Darcis and Igor Andreev in his opening two matches.
Despite the loss, Wawrinka will move to 10th when the new rankings come out Monday. With Federer, it will mark the first time two Swiss players have been in the top 10.
"I'm a little surprised," said Wawrinka, who entered the week ranked 24th. "It's a big jump for me."
The 22-year-old Wawrinka was the French Open junior champion in 2003.
Djokovic broke Wawrinka's serve in the opening game of the third set when Wawrinka hit a backhand long after a 20-stroke rally.
Trailing 2-3 in the third, Wawrinka called for a trainer and had his lower back treated. He came back and didn't appear to struggle, but Djokovic maintained his lead and broke again to close out the match in little more than 2 hours.
"He's always staying in the game," Wawrinka said. "It doesn't matter what the score is or what has happened in the game, he's always staying (focused) and trying."
After losing the first set, Djokovic started attacking the net more.
"That's what I've been working on the last couple of months -- varying my game more so I can go to the net and stay back, play defensively and offensively at the same time," he said.
Both players committed 33 unforced errors, but Djokovic led 29-18 in winners.
"This is one of the best tournaments I've won," Djokovic said in fluent Italian after receiving the winner's trophy from four-time Rome champion Gabriela Sabatini.
Djokovic was asked on the victory stand to perform his renowned imitations of other players. He declined, later explaining that he didn't like it when other players looked at the imitations "negatively."
"This is not what I do best. What I do best is I win on the court in tennis," Djokovic said. "That's what I'll try to do in the next 10, 15 years."
