Firefighter Heart Presumption Retirements in Massachusetts 1997–2004

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burress JW ; Holder JD ; Kales SN ; Peeples L ; Stallings LA
• Description:
  Objective: "Heart Presumption" legislation is common throughout North America. We sought to study Massachusetts firefighters retiring with heart disability awards. Methods: The authors conducted a retrospective review of Massachusetts firefighters: 362 receiving Heart Presumption pensions (1997-2004) and a comparison group of 310 professionally active firefighters. Results: Of retirements, 77% were due to coronary heart disease and 23% for other cardiovascular conditions. Only 42% of the retirements were related to discrete on-duty events. Fire suppression (odds ratio = 51, 95% confidence interval = 12-223) and alarm response (odds ratio = 6.4, 95% confidence interval = 2.5-17) were associated with markedly higher risks of duty-related heart retirement events than nonemergency activities. Cardiovascular risk factor prevalence was high among all retiree subgroups and significantly greater than among control firefighters in almost all cases. Conclusions: Our study supports calls for improved cardiovascular prevention and risk reduction strategies among firefighters. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular Diseases Cardiovascular System Environmental Exposure Firefighters Morbidity Mortality Occupational Health Preventive Medicine Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety

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• Keywords:
  Cardiovascular System Disease Cardiovascular System Disorders Exposure Levels Fatalities Fire Fighters Heart Heart Disease Morbidity Rates Mortality Rates Preventive Medicine Risk Factors Statistical Analysis

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• ISSN:
  1076-2752
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  48
• Issue:
  10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20056893
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Med 2006 Oct; 48(10):1047-1053
• Contact Point Address:
  Stefanos N. Kales, MD, MPH, The Cambridge Health Alliance, Department of Medicine, Occupational and Environmental Health, Macht Building, Room 427, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139
• Email:
  skales@challiance.org
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2007
• Performing Organization:
  Harvard School of Public Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20030701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20050630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a62c1156fa30aaa7eeed85b764682642ad3884e7cc5e633e1bfee7f1e1615747dfface9df2dc6a57f24afe33a00a5d98079ea46d233034575276f8ccecf397e9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/214389/cdc_214389_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 178.29 KB ]