Changets in Lung Function and Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide Across Wildfire Seasons in the Wildland Firefighter Exposure and Health Effect (WFFEHE) Study

Details

• Personal Author:
  Wu, Chieh-Ming ; Clark, Kathleen A. ; Adetona, Olorunfemi ; Navarro DuBose, Kathleen ; Butler, Corey R. ; Ramirez-Cardenas, Alejandra ; Odei, James ; West, Molly ; Hale, Christa R.
• Description:
  Introduction: Long-term pulmonary effects of wildland firefighting are unclear even though lung function declines have been observed following wildfire season and firefighting shift. Methods: Spirometry and airway inflammation indicated as fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) were measured among 152 wildland firefighters (WFFs) at the beginning (pre-season, April & May) and end (post-season, September & October) of the 2018 and/or 2019 wildfire seasons and among 19 WFFs at across 3 days of firefighting during a 2019 mid-season wildfire deployment. Results: Overall peak expiratory flow (PEF) and percent of predicted PEF (PEF%) significantly decreased across fire season when 2018 and 2019 measurements were combined (-0.15 +/- 0.07 L/s, p = 0.04; -1.87 +/- 0.71%, p = 0.01; respectively), more so due to 2018 declines. PEF% and percent of predicted forced vital capacity (FVC%) significantly improved between 2018 post-season and 2019 pre-season (i.e., off-season) (3.08 +/- 1.26%, p = 0.02; 0.99 +/- 0.41%, p = 0.02; respectively). FVC and FVC% significantly decreased across a firefighting shift on the first day of wildfire deployment (-0.12 +/- 0.03 L, p < 0.01; -2.35 +/- 0.64%, p < 0.01). FeNO significantly decreased across the 2018 and 2019 fire seasons (p < 0.01) and significantly increased during the off-season (p < 0.01). FeNO also showed statistically significant cross-shift decreases on the second day of wildfire deployment (-3.50 +/- 0.95 ppm, p < 0.01). Conclusions: Seasonal wildland firefighting were associated with decreases in lung function and FeNO as well as increases in respiratory symptom score in this cohort. While lung function recovered during the off-season among the WFFs, the results suggest a need for longer-term studies to determine the impact of chronic wildland firefighting on pulmonary health.
• Subjects:
  Firefighters Fires Lung Nitric Oxide Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Wildland Firefighter; Spirometry; Lung Function; Airway Inflammation; Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide Fire Fighters; Wildfires; Health Effects; Pulmonary Effects; Lung Function; Cohort Studies; Seasonal Factors; Spirometry;
• ISSN:
  1438-4639
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; West Virginia ; Colorado ; Montana ; Chicago Region [OSHA] ; Philadelphia Region [OSHA] ; Denver Region [OSHA]
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  RHD - Respiratory Health Division ; WSD - Western States Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  10 pdf pages
• Volume:
  272
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20071091
• Citation:
  Int J Hyg Environ Health 2026 Mar; 272:114729
• Email:
  adetona.1@osu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2026
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ccb2503b5a49b91e9894c90b4964bb154e941410f20e8f6e3d4eb6254da2abe0ac63f37eeb865124e0392daed5ac3a1d9485b7b1ace5e7ee78f8f5b654846cb2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/257867/cdc_257867_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.93 MB ]