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Work-related asthma is fast becoming one of the most commonly diagnosed occupational respiratory diseases in the United States, and people who work in certain industries may run a higher risk than others, new study findings show.
An analysis of survey responses from nearly 21,000 adults revealed that men and women who work in printing or publishing, furniture or lumber, health care, and entertainment and recreation, may be most likely to be diagnosed with asthma, as are those who work for automobile dealers and gas stations.
"This study stresses that workers employed in these industries need to be informed by the employer and aware that they are potentially exposed to asthmagens and the seriousness of their effect," study author Dr. Ki Moon Bang, of the West Virginia-based National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, told Reuters Health.
In their study, Bang and colleagues reviewed information from 20,991 men and women who participated in the 2001 National Health Interview survey, to identify the industries associated with an increased risk of asthma.
Overall, 6.5 percent of survey respondents reported having been diagnosed with asthma. This represents about 8.6 million individuals among 133 million adult workers in the United States, the researchers report in this month's issue of the American Journal of Industrial Medicine.
Asthma was most prevalent among whites and females, and among automobile dealers, gasoline station workers and those in the durable goods field.
The industries associated with a greater risk of asthma varied by race, the report indicates.
According to the American Thoracic Society, an estimated 15 percent of all adult cases of asthma may be related to the workplace. Based on this estimate, Bang and colleagues write, approximately 1.3 million adult asthma cases could be attributed to occupational exposure.
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