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Occupation and adult‐onset asthma among chinese women in a population‐based cohort
Author(s) -
Krstev Srmena,
Ji BuTian,
Shu XiaoOu,
Blair Aaron,
Zheng Wei,
Lubin Jay,
Vermeulen Roel,
Hauptmann Michael,
Rothman Nathaniel,
Gao YuTang,
Mustafa Dosemeci,
Chow WongHo
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.20439
Subject(s) - medicine , asthma , odds ratio , cohort , chronic bronchitis , logistic regression , bronchitis , demography , population , occupational asthma , cohort study , environmental health , sociology
Background Exposure to industrial irritants is believed to have contributed to the increasing prevalence of asthma worldwide. We examined the associations between occupation and asthma among women in a case‐control study nested in the population‐based Shanghai Women's Health Study cohort in China. Methods Cases were 1,050 women who reported a physician‐diagnosed asthma as adults. Controls were 4,200 women matched to the cases by year of birth and age at diagnosis. Lifetime occupational histories were obtained. Logistic regression was applied to estimate odds ratios (ORs) adjusting for smoking, education, family income, and concurrent chronic bronchitis. Results Asthma is more prevalent in production industries for metal tools (OR = 2.4; 1.3–4.7), metal products for everyday use (OR = 1.6; 1.1–2.4), ships (OR = 2.6; 1.0–6.8), and clocks (OR = 1.9; 1.0–3.4), and in occupations as farm workers (OR = 4.0; 1.2–13.0), laboratory technicians and analyzers (OR = 2.2; 1.2‐3.9), and installation and maintenance workers for weaving and knitting machineries (OR = 2.4; 1.1–5.4). Other associations less commonly reported were identified for electricians (OR = 2.1; 1.1–4.1), performers (OR = 3.2; 1.4–7.4), administrative workers in organizations and enterprises (OR = 1.8; 1.1–2.8), and postal and telecommunication workers (OR = 3.5; 1.6–7.6). Conclusions Our findings suggest that occupational exposures contribute to the development of asthma in women. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.