Occupational Exposures and Ischaemic Heart Disease: Results from The Entire New Zealand Population

Introduction Ischaemic Heart Disease (IHD) is a leading cause of death in Western countries. Common occupational exposures such as loud noise, long working hours, and sedentary work have been associated with increased IHD risks, but inconsistently. Objectives and Approach This study examines associations between incident IHD and exposure to long working hours, sedentary work, and loud noise. Individual-level microdata from Statistics New Zealand Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI) were extracted for adults (age 20-64 years) with occupation recorded on the 2013 Census. The number of working hours was extracted from the Census, and exposure to sedentary work and loud noise was assessed through job exposure matrices (JEMs). IHD events (from 2013 to end of 2018) were identified using hospitalisations, prescriptions and deaths. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using cox regression adjusted for age, socioeconomic status, and smoking. Results were stratified by sex and ethnicity. Results A total of 20,610 IHD cases were identified from 1,594,680 individuals employed at time of Census. Both short (90% of the time compared to 90dBA) compared to no exposure (<80dBA) was associated with elevated HRs without reaching statistical significance (HR(Non-Māori)=1.12, 95%CI=0.96-1.29; HR(Māori)=1.25, 95%CI=0.89-1.75). For females exposure to the 80-85dBA category compared to no exposure also showed elevated HRs (HR(Non-Māori)=1.14; 95%CI=1.04-1.26; HR(Māori)=1.16; 95%CI=0.93-1.46), but too few females were employed in jobs with the highest noise exposure. Conclusion These preliminary analyses do not support sedentary work or long working hours as IHD risk factors, but do suggest a modest increase in IHD risk associated with occupational exposure to noise.FALS

Gender differences in occupational exposure patterns

Objectives: The authors conducted a population-based survey to examine gender differences in occupational exposure patterns and to investigate whether any observed differences are due to: (a) gender differences in occupational distribution; and/or (b) gender differences in tasks within occupations. Methods: Men and women aged 20e64 years were randomly selected from the Electoral Roll and invited to take part in a telephone interview, which collected information on self-reported occupational exposure to specific dusts and chemicals, physical exposures and organisational factors. The authors used logistic regression to calculate prevalence ORs and 95% CIs comparing the exposure prevalence of males (n¼1431) and females (n¼1572), adjusting for age. To investigate whether men and women in the same occupation were equally exposed, the authors also matched males to females on current occupation using the five-digit code (n¼1208) and conducted conditional logistic regression adjusting for age. Results: Overall, male workers were two to four times more likely to report exposure to dust and chemical substances, loud noise, irregular hours, night shifts and vibrating tools. Women were 30% more likely to report repetitive tasks and working at high speed, and more likely to report exposure to disinfectants, hair dyes and textile dust. When men were compared with women with the same occupation, gender differences were attenuated. However, males remained significantly more likely to report exposure to welding fumes, herbicides, wood dust, solvents, tools that vibrate, irregular hours and night-shift work. Women remained more likely to report repetitive tasks and working at high speed, and in addition were more likely to report awkward or tiring positions compared with men with the same occupation. Conclusion: This population-based study showed substantial differences in occupational exposure patterns between men and women, even within the same occupation. Thus, the influence of gender should not be overlooked in occupational health research

Occupational groups and ischaemic heart disease in New Zealand – a longitudinal linkage study

Abstract Background/Introduction Occupation is a poorly characterised risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), with females and minority populations particularly under-represented in research. There is also a lack of longitudinal studies using detailed health data that does not rely on self-reports. Purpose This study aimed to address these gaps by assessing the association between a range of occupational groups and ischaemic heart disease (IHD) in New Zealand (NZ), through linkage of population-based occupational surveys to routinely collected health data. Half of the study population were females and 40% were indigenous Māori (who comprise 15% of the total 4.8 million NZ population), which enabled sex and ethnicity-specific aspects of the relationship between occupation and IHD to be assessed. Methods Two probability-based sample surveys of the NZ adult population (New Zealand Workforce Survey (NZWS); 2004–2006; n=3003) and of the Māori population (NZWS Māori; 2009–2010; n=2107), for which detailed occupational histories and lifestyle factors were collected, were linked with routinely collected health data available through Statistics NZ. Cox regression was used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) for “ever-worked” in any one of nine major occupational groups, with “never worked” in that occupational group defined as the reference group. Analyses were controlled for age, deprivation and smoking, and stratified by sex and ethnicity. Results The strongest associations were found for “plant/machine operators and assemblers” and “elementary workers”, particularly among female Māori (HR 2.19, 95% CI 1.16–4.13 and HR 2.03, 1.07–3.82 respectively). In contrast, inverse associations with IHD across all groups were observed for “technicians and associate professionals”, which was significant for NZWS males (HR 0.52, 0.32–0.84). There were some sex and ethnic differences, particularly for “clerks”, where a positive association was found for NZWS males (HR 1.81, 1.19–2.74), whilst an inverse association was observed for Māori females (HR 0.42, 0.22–0.82). Duration analyses (≤2 years, 2–10 years and 10+ years) showed significant dose-response trends for “clerks” in NZWS males, and “plant/machine operators and assemblers” and “elementary workers” in Māori females. Further adjustments for other potential confounders such diabetes mellitus, hypertension and high cholesterol did not affect the results. Conclusion Associations between occupation and IHD differed significantly across occupational groups and between sexes and ethnicities, even within the same occupational groups. This suggests that results may not be generalised across these groups and occupational interventions to reduce IHD risk may therefore need different approaches depending on the population and specific groups of interest. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Other. Main funding source(s): Health Research Council (HRC) of New Zealand </jats:sec

Midterm Results After Abandoning Routine Preemptive Coil Embolization of the Internal Iliac Artery During Endovascular Aneurysm Repair

Purpose: To analyze the results of endovascular repair of common iliac artery (CIA) aneurysms without preemptive coil embolization of the internal iliac artery (IIA). Materials and Methods: Between January 2010 and July 2016, 79 patients (mean age 74.3±8.4 years; 76 men) underwent endovascular repair extending into the external iliac artery owing to a CIA aneurysm. The procedure was performed for a ruptured aneurysm in 22 (28%) patients. Eighty-one IIAs were intentionally covered. The median CIA diameter was 37 mm (range 20–90). The primary outcomes were the occurrence of type II endoleaks and the incidence of buttock claudication. Results: Five (6%) patients died within 30 days (4 with ruptured aneurysms and 1 elective case). Two type II endoleaks originating from a covered IIA were recorded; one required an endovascular intervention because of aneurysm growth. The other patient died of a rupture based on an additional type III endoleak. Mean follow-up was 37.6±26.3 months. Nineteen (26%) patients required a secondary intervention. Buttock claudication was reported in 21 (28%) of 74 patients and persisted after 1 year in 7. No severe ischemic complications as a result of IIA coverage were recorded, and no revascularization was required during follow-up. Conclusion: Treatment of CIA aneurysms by overstenting the IIA without preemptive coil embolization is safe and has a low risk of type II endoleak and aneurysm growth. Persisting buttock claudication is rare