Associations of Employment Factors with Cardiovascular Disease in a National Sample of U.S. Firefighters: Findings from the National Health Interview Survey [preprint]

Details

• Journal Article:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• Personal Author:
  Abasilim, Chibuzor ; Ogungbe, Oluwabunmi ; Shannon, Brett ; Ajibewa, Tiwaloluwa ; Madigan, Dana ; McCoy, Katherine E. ; Friedman, Lee S.
• Description:
  Background: We explored whether employment factors were associated with prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a nationally representative sample of U.S. firefighters. Methods: In the National Health Interview Survey, we estimated associations using survey-weighted multivariable logistic regression models. Results: Firefighters employed for 20 or more years (versus <10 years) had higher odds of coronary heart disease (CHD) and composite CVD. After controlling for covariates, associations attenuated but remained statistically significant for CHD (OR = 7.23, 95% CI:1.65,31.8) but not composite CVD (OR = 1.18, 95% CI:0.39,3.60). Marginally significant and higher odds of composite CVD was observed for firefighters employed in large (100-or-more employees) versus small departments (1-24 employees). Conclusions: Firefighter's already elevated risk of CHD compounds markedly with tenure, particularly after 20 years. Associations were independent of age, sex, private insurance status and body mass index.
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular Diseases Cardiovascular System Epidemiology Firefighters Heart Diseases Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Cardiovascular Disease; Firefighters; National Health Interview Survey; NHIS; Tenure; Coronary Heart Disease; Compensation; Workforce Size Cardiovascular Disease; Fire Fighters; National Health Interview Survey; NHIS; Epidemiology; Heart Disease;
• Source:
  J Occup Environ Med 2025 Dec; :[Epub ahead of print]
• ISSN:
  1076-2752
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant; Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Illinois ; Wisconsin ; Maryland ; Chicago Region [OSHA] ; Philadelphia Region [OSHA]
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  37 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20071198
• Contact Point Address:
  Chibuzor Abasilim, PhD, Joseph J. Zilber College of Public Health, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, 1240 N 10th St, Milwaukee, WI 53205
• Email:
  Abasilim@uwm.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2026
• Performing Organization:
  University of Illinois at Chicago
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• End Date:
  20290630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:3a9d2a3d8615649142a224e6eeff9b2baae2fe62a93c9f768fd7fd83e130a2b9fa2e0bc68c1bb9b1204ef85be452074ccbfbb90d6f781413d4d235965020c5b9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/258677/cdc_258677_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.42 MB ]