A prospective cohort study on comparison of risk of death of respiratory system diseases between occupational dust exposure and smoking / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare the effects of dust exposure and smoking on mortality of respiratory system diseases (RSD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Based on the Guangzhou Occupational Health Surveillance Record System established between 1989 and 1992, 80,987 factory workers, aged 30 years old or older, occupationally exposed or not exposed to dusts, were included in a prospective cohort study.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>(1) The mean age of the cohort was 43.5. Most subjects were workers, had secondary education, and almost all were married. The dust exposure rate was 16.3%, the smoking rate 43.7% and the alcohol-drinking rate 33.5%. (2) The cohort was followed up for 8 years on average, but 35 people (0.04%) were lost for follow up. Among the 1593 deaths, 219 and 90 people died of lung cancer and non-cancer respiratory system diseases (NCRSD) respectively. (3) The adjusted relative risk (RR) of death of lung cancer for smokers, 3.32, was 2.2 times of that for dust exposed workers, 1.53, and the RR of death of NCRSD for dust exposed workers, 2.41, 1.28 times of that for smokers, 1.89, especially for silica dust-exposed workers, 5.72, 3.03 times of that for smokers. Dust exposure combined with smoking caused significantly higher RR of death of RSD. (4) In male, the death risks of RSD were increased with the amount of smoking per day and years of smoking.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Occupational dust exposure and smoking may cause excessive lung cancer and NCRSD death with synergistic effects. Smoking has higher RR of Lung cancer death than dust exposure. However, the dust exposure contributes to higher RR of NCRSD death. There is a significant dose-effect relationship between smoking and the death risk of RSD.</p>

A prospective cohort study on the effect of occupational dust exposure and smoking on mortality / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of dust exposure and smoking on mortality.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Based on the Guangzhou Occupational Health Surveillance Record System established in 1989-1992, 61,648 factory workers, aged > or = 30, occupationally exposed to dust and non-exposure to dust or any other hazardous substances(controls), were included in a prospective cohort study.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>(1) 28 were lost to follow-up. Malignant neoplasm was most common among 1,186 deaths. (2) Most subjects were male workers, aged 35 to 44, with secondary education, and married. 42.2% had ever smoked and 32.8% were ever-drinkers. (3) To compare with non-exposure, non-smoking + non-smoking and non-exposure respectively, the adjusted RR of death from all causes, malignant neoplasm and respiratory diseases were 1.24, 1.34 and 1.96 respectively for dust exposed workers(compared to control, P < 0.01), 1.16, 1.37 and 1.63 respectively for those smoking(compared to non-smoker except RR of death from respiratory diseases, P < 0.01), and 1.48, 1.85 and 3.12 respectively for those smoking and dust exposure, which were far greater than those either smoked or exposed to dust alone(P < 0.01). (4) The influence of dust exposure on death was mainly showed in occupational exposure to silica dust and wood dust.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Both dust exposure and smoking may increase the mortality, and they had synergistic effect.</p>