Occupational status and chronic respiratory diseases: a cross-sectional study based on the data of the Rafsanjan Cohort Study

• Published in: BMC pulmonary medicine Vol. 24; no. 1; p. 151
• Main Authors: Bagheri-Hosseinabadi, Zahra, Bahreyni, Ali, Basirat, Hosein, Khalili, Parvin, Vakilian, Alireza, Amin, Fatemeh
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 23.03.2024; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Body mass index; Care and treatment; Chronic illnesses; Chronic respiratory diseases; Diagnosis; Employment; Epidemiology; Health aspects; Lung diseases; Lung diseases, Obstructive; Miners; Occupational health and safety; Occupational status; Outdoor air quality; Physical activity; Prospective epidemiological research studies in Iran (PERSIAN); Rafsanjan Cohort Study; Regression analysis; Respiratory diseases; Socioeconomic factors; Tobacco habit; Iran; Rafsanjan Cohort Study; Prospective epidemiological research studies in Iran (PERSIAN); Occupational status; Chronic respiratory diseases
• ISSN: 1471-2466; 1471-2466
• DOI: 10.1186/s12890-024-02916-y

The aim of the present study was to investigate the possible connection between occupational status and chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) among the Iranian population. The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 9934 individuals aged 35-70 years enrolled in the Rafsanjan Cohort Study (RCS), a component of the Prospective Epidemiological Research Studies in Iran (PERSIAN). Detailed questionnaires were used to collect information on various factors, such as occupation, sociodemographic characteristics, medical history, anthropometric measurements, physical activity, cigarette and hookah smoking, opium use, and alcohol consumption. The association between occupational class and CRD was evaluated using logistic regression models for rare events. In the present study, 4624 (46.55%) participants were male, and 5310 (53.45%) were female. The prevalence of CRD among all participants was 2.61%. Occupational activities were classified into two categories: In class I, the largest group was the homemaker and unemployment category (41.73%), followed by self-employment (34.39%), employment (13.03%), and retired individuals (10.84%). In class II, there were pistachio farmers (12.61%), copper miners (3.62%), and others in various occupations (83.76%). Subjects with CRD were significantly more likely to be homemakers, unemployed, elderly, female, less educated, and obese. There was no significant relationship between CRD and job type/occupational status after adjusting for some potential confounding variables. There was no significant relationship between CRD and job type/occupational status. However, longitudinal studies are needed to assess the impact of job type/occupational status on the risk of CRD.