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All-cause and cause-specific mortality in a cohort of WTC-exposed and non-WTC-exposed firefighters
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6 2023
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Source: Occup Environ Med. 80(6):297-303
[PDF-122.58 KB]
Details:
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Alternative Title:Occup Environ Med
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Personal Author:
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Description:Objective
To compare mortality rates in WTC-exposed Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) firefighters with rates in similarly healthy, non-WTC-exposed/non-FDNY firefighters, and compare mortality in each firefighter cohort with the general population.
Methods
10,786 male WTC-exposed FDNY firefighters and 8,813 male non-WTC-exposed firefighters from other urban fire departments who were employed on 9/11/2001 were included in the analyses. Only WTC-exposed firefighters received health monitoring via the WTC Health Program (WTCHP). Follow-up began 9/11/2001 and ended at the earlier of death date or 12/31/2016. Death data were obtained from the National Death Index, and demographics from the fire departments. We estimated standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) in each firefighter cohort vs. US males using demographic-specific US mortality rates. Poisson regression models estimated relative rates (RRs) of all-cause and cause-specific mortality in WTC-exposed vs. non-WTC-exposed firefighters, controlling for age and race.
Results
Between 9/11/2001-12/31/2016, there were 261 deaths among WTC-exposed firefighters and 605 among non-WTC-exposed. Both cohorts had reduced all-cause mortality compared with US males (SMR[95%CI]=0.30 [0.26-0.34] and 0.60 [0.55-0.65] in WTC-exposed and non-WTC-exposed, respectively). WTC-exposed firefighters also had lower rates of all-cause mortality (RR=0.54, 95%CI=0.49-0.59) and cancer-, cardiovascular- and respiratory disease-specific mortality compared with non-WTC-exposed firefighters.
Conclusion
Both firefighter cohorts had lower than expected all-cause mortality. Fifteen years post-9/11/2001, mortality was lower in WTC-exposed vs. non-WTC-exposed firefighters. Lower mortality in the WTC-exposed suggests not just a healthy worker effect, but additional factors such as greater access to free health monitoring and treatment that they receive via the WTCHP.
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Source:
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Pubmed ID:36972975
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Pubmed Central ID:PMC10523283
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Document Type:
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Funding:
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Volume:80
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Issue:6
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