Comparing Self-Reported Obstructive Airway Disease in Firefighters With and Without World Trade Center Exposure

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hall, Charles B. ; Mueller, Alexandra K. ; Prezant, David J. ; Singh, Ankura ; Webber, Mayris P. ; Zeig-Owens, Rachel
• Description:
  Background: The degree to which routine, non-World Trade Center (WTC) firefighting exposures contribute to the WTC exposure-obstructive airway disease (OAD) relationship is unknown. Our objective was to compare the frequency of self-reported OAD diagnoses in WTC-exposed firefighters from the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) compared with non-WTC-exposed firefighters from other cities and the general population. Methods: A total of 9792 WTC-exposed male FDNY firefighters and 3138 non-WTC-exposed male firefighters from Chicago, Philadelphia, and San Francisco who were actively employed on 9/11/01 and completed a health questionnaire were included. Logistic regression estimated odds ratios of self-reported asthma and COPD diagnoses in firefighters (WTC-exposed vs. non-WTC-exposed; all firefighters vs. general population), adjusting for age, race, smoking status, and last medical visit. Results: WTC-exposed firefighters were, on average, younger on 9/11 (mean +/-SD= 40.2 +/- 7.4 vs. 44.1 +/- 9.1) and less likely to report ever-smoking (32.9% vs.41.8%) than non-WTC-exposed firefighters. Odds of any OAD and asthma were 4.5 and 6.3 times greater, respectively, in WTC-exposed versus non-WTC-exposed. Odds of COPD were also greater in WTC-exposed versus non-WTC-exposed, particularly among never-smokers. Compared with the general population, WTC-exposed firefighters had greater odds of both asthma and COPD, while then on exposed had lower odds of asthma and greater odds of COPD. Conclusions: Odds ratios for OAD diagnoses were greater in WTC-exposed firefighters versus both non-WTC-exposed and the general population after adjusting for covariates. While asthma and other OADs are known occupational hazards of firefighting, WTC exposure significantly compounded these adverse respiratory effects. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Chronic Disease Cohort Studies Firefighters Mental Health Nervous System Occupational Health Safety September 11 Terrorist Attacks Surveys And Questionnaires
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: World Trade Center Cancer Registries Chronic Diseases Cohort Studies Fire Fighters Firefighters Follow-up Health Surveys Mental Health Physical Fitness Worker Health World Trade Center WTC

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• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement ; Contract
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  9 pdf pages
• Volume:
  66
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20066724
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2023 Mar; 66(3):243-251
• Contact Point Address:
  Rachel Zeig-Owens, DrPH, FDNY, Headquarters, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201
• Email:
  rachel.zeig-owens@fdny.nyc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2023
• Performing Organization:
  Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20160901
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• End Date:
  20210831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6e890cf568d886bc0d68b127ed66d36145000815268bcd506739d5ae59fac67c0d711ca8f50f0aa889a01c473c34762809532688759f8bcab97a5ad98808c316
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230789/cdc_230789_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 726.79 KB ]