Last data update: May 13, 2024. (Total: 46773 publications since 2009)
Records 1-9 (of 9 Records) |
Query Trace: White GE[original query] |
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Work-related asthma - 22 states, 2012
Mazurek JM , White GE . MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2015 64 (13) 343-346 Work-related asthma (WRA) is a preventable occupational disease associated with serious adverse health outcomes. Using the 2006-2009 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Adult Asthma Call-back Survey (ACBS) data from 38 states and the District of Columbia, CDC estimated that among ever-employed adults with current asthma, the proportion of current asthma that is work-related was 9.0%. In 2011, the BRFSS cellular telephone samples were added to the traditional landline telephone samples and the weighting methodology was changed.dagger In 2012, a revised ACBS question on WRA diagnosis section sign was asked. To provide updated estimates of current asthma prevalence and the proportion of asthma that is work-related, by state, CDC analyzed data from BRFSS and ACBS collected from 22 states using both landline and cellular telephone samples during 2012. This report summarizes the results of that analysis, which indicate that 9.0% of adults had current asthma and that among ever-employed adults with current asthma, the overall proportion of current asthma that is work-related was 15.7%. State-specific proportions of asthma that is work-related ranged from 9.0% to 23.1%. Distribution of the proportion of WRA significantly differed by age and was highest among persons aged 45-64 years (20.7%). These findings provide a new baseline after the implementation of changes in survey methodology and the adoption of a revised WRA question. These results can assist states, other government agencies, health professionals, employers, workers, and worker representatives to better target intervention and prevention efforts to reduce the burden of WRA. |
Silicosis mortality trends and new exposures to respirable crystalline silica - United States, 2001-2010
Bang KM , Mazurek JM , Wood JM , White GE , Hendricks SA , Weston A . MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2015 64 (5) 117-120 Silicosis is a preventable occupational lung disease caused by the inhalation of respirable crystalline silica dust and can progress to respiratory failure and death. No effective specific treatment for silicosis is available; patients are provided supportive care, and some patients may be considered for lung transplantation. Chronic silicosis can develop or progress even after occupational exposure has ceased. The number of deaths from silicosis declined from 1,065 in 1968 to 165 in 2004. Hazardous occupational exposures to silica dust have long been known to occur in a variety of industrial operations, including mining, quarrying, sandblasting, rock drilling, road construction, pottery making, stone masonry, and tunneling operations. Recently, hazardous silica exposures have been newly documented during hydraulic fracturing of gas and oil wells and during fabrication and installation of engineered stone countertops. To describe temporal trends in silicosis mortality in the United States, CDC analyzed annual multiple cause-of-death data for 2001-2010 for decedents aged ≥15 years. During 2001-2010, a total of 1,437 decedents had silicosis coded as an underlying or contributing cause of death. The annual number of silicosis deaths declined from 164 (death ratedagger = 0.74 per 1 million population) in 2001 to 101 (0.39 per 1 million) in 2010 (p = 0.002). Because of new operations and tasks placing workers at risk for silicosis, efforts to limit workplace exposure to crystalline silica need to be maintained. |
Farm work-related asthma among US primary farm operators
Mazurek JM , White GE , Rodman C , Schleiff PL . J Agromedicine 2015 20 (1) 31-42 The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of current asthma and the proportion of current asthma that is related to work on the farm among primary farm operators. The 2011 Farm and Ranch Safety Survey data were used to produce estimates and prevalence odds ratios. An estimated 5.1% of farm operators had asthma. Of these, 15.4% had farm work-related asthma. Among operators with farm work-related asthma, 54.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 41.8%-68.2%) had an asthma attack in the prior 12 months and 33.3% (95% CI: 21.2%-45.4%) had an asthma attack that occurred while doing farm work. Of those who had an asthma attack that occurred while doing farm work, 65.0% associated their asthma attack with plant/tree materials. This study provides updated information on asthma and the proportion of current asthma that is related to work on the farm and identifies certain groups of farm operators that might benefit from workplace asthma prevention intervention. |
Patient-physician communication about work-related asthma: what we do and do not know
Mazurek JM , White GE , Moorman JE , Storey E . Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 2014 114 (2) 97-102 BACKGROUND: Effective patient-physician communication is the key component of the patient-physician relationship. OBJECTIVE: To assess the proportion of ever-employed adults with current asthma who talked about asthma associated with work with their physician or other health professional and to identify factors associated with this communication. METHODS: The 2006 to 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Asthma Call-Back Survey data from 40 states and the District of Columbia for ever-employed adults (≥18 years old) with current asthma (N = 50,433) were examined. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with communication with a health professional about asthma and work. RESULTS: Among ever-employed adults with current asthma, 9.1% were ever told by a physician that their asthma was related to any job they ever had and 11.7% ever told a physician or other health professional that this was the case. When responses to the 2 questions were combined, the proportion of those who communicated with a health professional about asthma and work was 14.7%. Communication with a health professional about asthma and work was associated with age, race or ethnicity, employment, education, income, insurance, and urgent treatment for worsening asthma. CONCLUSION: A small proportion of patients with asthma might communicate with a health professional about asthma associated with work. Future studies should examine whether patients with asthma ever discussed with a health professional the possibility that their asthma might be related to work to provide information on the frequency of patient-clinician communication about asthma related to work. |
Employed adults with asthma who have frequent workplace exposures
White GE , Mazurek JM , Storey E . J Asthma 2014 52 (1) 1-17 BACKGROUND: The recent increase in asthma prevalence is thought to be partially due to environmental changes such as changes in air pollution and occupational exposures. Nationally representative information on workplace exposures among U.S. adults with asthma is limited. METHODS: We examined 2010 National Health Interview Survey data to determine the proportion of employed adults with asthma who had frequent workplace exposures. RESULTS: Among adults with current asthma, 19.6% frequently worked outdoors, 17.5% were frequently exposed to workplace secondhand smoke, and 28.1% were frequently exposed to workplace vapors, gas, dust, or fumes. Adults ever told by a health professional that asthma is probably work-related, when compared to adults who were not, had increased odds of frequent work outdoors (prevalence odds ratio [POR]=2.76), frequent workplace exposure to secondhand smoke (POR=3.08), and frequent workplace exposure to vapors, gas, dust, or fumes (POR=3.56). CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first population-based study in the United States that estimates the proportion of working adults with asthma that have frequent workplace exposures. Increasing the understanding of workplace exposures among adults with asthma will help enable prevention of asthma through workplace exposure reduction or avoidance. Future studies should further examine industries and occupations of individuals with asthma and frequent workplace exposures. |
Influenza vaccination among persons with work-related asthma
Mazurek JM , White GE , Moorman JE , Storey E . Am J Prev Med 2014 47 (2) 203-11 BACKGROUND: Seasonal influenza vaccination is recommended for all asthma patients. Persons with work-related asthma may have more severe disease than those with non-work-related asthma and may particularly benefit from receiving influenza vaccination. PURPOSE: To determine if influenza vaccination coverage differs among individuals aged 18-64 years with work-related and non-work-related asthma. METHODS: Data from the 2006-2009 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Asthma Call-Back Survey collected in 38 states and the District of Columbia were analyzed in 2013. Multivariable logistic regression and predictive marginal analyses were conducted to identify factors independently associated with influenza vaccination among respondents aged 18-64 years with work-related asthma. RESULTS: Among adults aged 18-64 years with current asthma, an estimated 42.7% received influenza vaccination in the past 12 months. Although influenza vaccination coverage was significantly higher among adults with work-related asthma than those with non-work-related asthma (48.5% vs 42.8%), this association became non-significant after adjustment for demographic and clinical characteristics (prevalence ratio=1.08, 95% CI=0.99, 1.20). Among individuals with work-related asthma, receiving the influenza vaccine was associated with being 50-64 years old, being unemployed in the prior year, and seeking urgent treatment for worsening asthma symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Among persons with work-related and non-work-related asthma, less than half received influenza vaccination in the prior year, both below the Healthy People 2010 target of 60%. These results suggest the need for strengthening current vaccination interventions to meet the updated Healthy People 2020 objective of achieving at least 70% influenza vaccination coverage. |
Gender differences in work-related asthma: surveillance data from California, Massachusetts, Michigan, and New Jersey, 1993-2008
White GE , Seaman C , Filios MS , Mazurek JM , Flattery J , Harrison RJ , Reilly MJ , Rosenman KD , Lumia ME , Stephens AC , Pechter E , Fitzsimmons K , Davis LK . J Asthma 2014 51 (7) 691-702 OBJECTIVE: To characterize work-related asthma by gender. METHODS: We analyzed state-based sentinel surveillance data on confirmed work-related asthma cases collected from California, Massachusetts, Michigan, and New Jersey during 1993-2008. We used Chi-square and Fisher's Exact Test statistics to compare select characteristics between females and males. RESULTS: Of the 8239 confirmed work-related asthma cases, 60% were female. When compared to males with work-related asthma, females with work-related asthma were more likely to be identified through workers' compensation (14.8% versus 10.6%) and less likely to be identified through hospital data (14.2% versus 16.9%). Moreover, when compared to males, females were more likely to have work-aggravated asthma (24.4% versus 13.5%) and less likely to have new-onset asthma (48.0% versus 56.5%). Females were also more likely than males with work-related asthma to work in healthcare and social assistance (28.7% versus 5.2%), educational services (11.8% versus 4.2%), and retail trade (5.0% versus 3.9%) industries and in office and administrative support (20.0% versus 4.0%), healthcare practitioners and technical (13.4% versus 1.6%), and education training and library (6.2% versus 1.3%) occupations. Agent groups most frequently associated with work-related asthma were miscellaneous chemicals (20.3%), cleaning materials (15.3%), and indoor air pollutants (14.9%) in females and miscellaneous chemicals (15.7%), mineral and inorganic dusts (13.2%), and pyrolysis products (12.7%) in males. CONCLUSIONS: Among adults with work-related asthma, males and females differ in terms of workplace exposures, occupations, and industries. Physicians should consider these gender differences when diagnosing and treating asthma in working adults. |
Asthma in health care workers: 2008 and 2010 behavioral risk factor surveillance system asthma call-back survey
White GE , Mazurek JM , Moorman JE . J Occup Environ Med 2013 55 (12) 1463-8 OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of current asthma and the proportion of asthma that is work-related among health care and non-health care workers. METHODS: We used 2008 and 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System High Risk/Health Care Worker Module and Asthma Call-Back Survey data collected in 35 states and the District of Columbia to estimate prevalence ratios (PRs). RESULTS: Significantly more health care workers/volunteers than non-health care workers/volunteers with current asthma had asthma attacks (PR = 1.23; 95% confidence interval = 1.03 to 1.46) and asthma symptoms within the past year (PR = 1.07; 95% confidence interval = 1.00 to 1.14). There was no significant difference in the proportion of health care and non-health care workers/volunteers diagnosed with current asthma or work-related asthma. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study are consistent with previous research showing that health care workers with asthma have higher proportions of asthma attacks than non-health care workers. |
Work-related asthma and employment status - 38 states and District of Columbia, 2006-2009
White GE , Mazurek JM , Moorman JE . J Asthma 2013 50 (9) 954-9 OBJECTIVES: To examine differences in current employment status between persons with health professional-diagnosed work-related asthma and non-work-related asthma and to examine factors associated with unemployment in these groups. METHODS: We analyzed the 2006-2009 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Asthma Call-back Survey for ever-employed adults (excluding those who were retired, homemakers, and students at the time of the interview) with current asthma in 38 states and District of Columbia (N=25,680). We calculated prevalence ratios (PRs) adjusted for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, and income. RESULTS: Among adults with current asthma, individuals with work-related asthma were less likely to be currently employed for wages (PR=0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.84-0.95) and more likely to be unable to work (PR=1.44; 95% CI=1.24-1.67) than those with non-work-related asthma. Among adults with current asthma who were unemployed at the time of the interview, adults with work-related asthma did not differ from those with non-work-related asthma in naming disability as reason for unemployment (PR=1.09; 95% CI=0.94-1.26). However, those with work-related asthma were more likely to be unable to work for health reasons other than disability (PR=1.46; 95% CI=1.01-2.12) than adults with non-work-related asthma. CONCLUSIONS: Additional studies are needed to determine what health reasons prevent individuals with work-related asthma from working and if the health reasons are asthma-related. |
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- Page last updated:May 13, 2024
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