Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Apr 22;66(4):433-446.
doi: 10.1093/annweh/wxab087.

Ischaemic Heart Disease and Occupational Exposures: A Longitudinal Linkage Study in the General and Māori Populations of New Zealand

Lucy A Barnes  1 , Amanda Eng  1 , Marine Corbin  1 , Hayley J Denison  1 , Andrea 't Mannetje  1 , Stephen Haslett  1   2   3   4 , Dave McLean  1 , Lis Ellison-Loschmann  1   5 , Rod Jackson  6 , Jeroen Douwes  1
Affiliations

Ischaemic Heart Disease and Occupational Exposures: A Longitudinal Linkage Study in the General and Māori Populations of New Zealand

Lucy A Barnes et al. Ann Work Expo Health. .

Abstract

Objectives: This study assessed associations between occupational exposures and ischaemic heart disease (IHD) for males and females in the general and Māori populations (indigenous people of New Zealand).

Methods: Two surveys of the general adult [New Zealand Workforce Survey (NZWS); 2004-2006; n = 3003] and Māori population (Māori NZWS; 2009-2010; n = 2107), with information on occupational exposures, were linked with administrative health data and followed-up until December 2018. Cox proportional hazards regression (adjusted for age, deprivation, and smoking) was used to assess associations between organizational factors, stress, and dust, chemical and physical exposures, and IHD.

Results: Dust [hazard ratio (HR) 1.6, 95%CI 1.1-2.4], smoke or fumes (HR 1.5, 1.0-2.3), and oils and solvents (HR 1.5, 1.0-2.3) were associated with IHD in NZWS males. A high frequency of awkward or tiring hand positions was associated with IHD in both males and females of the NZWS (HRs 1.8, 1.1-2.8 and 2.4, 1.1-5.0, respectively). Repetitive tasks and working at very high speed were associated with IHD among NZWS females (HRs 3.4, 1.1-10.4 and 2.6, 1.2-5.5, respectively). Māori NZWS females working with vibrating tools and those exposed to a high frequency of loud noise were more likely to experience IHD (HRs 2.3, 1.1-4.8 and 2.1, 1.0-4.4, respectively). Exposure to multiple dust and chemical factors was associated with IHD in the NZWS males, as was exposure to multiple physical factors in males and females of the NZWS.

Conclusions: Exposures associated with an elevated IHD risk included dust, smoke or fumes, oils and solvents, awkward grip or hand movements, carrying out repetitive tasks, working at very high speed, loud noise, and working with tools that vibrate. Results were not consistently observed for males and females and between the general and Māori populations.

Keywords: cardiovascular disease; data linkage; ischaemic heart disease; longitudinal; occupational exposures.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Barnes LA, Eng A, Corbin Met al. (2020) The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in different occupational groups in New Zealand. Ann Work Expo Health; 64: 645–58. - PubMed
    1. Bulka CM, Daviglus ML, Persky VWet al. (2019) Association of occupational exposures with cardiovascular disease among US Hispanics/Latinos. Heart; 105: 439–48. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Carter S, Hartman Y, Holder Set al. (2017) Sedentary behavior and cardiovascular disease risk: mediating mechanisms. Exerc Sport Sci Rev; 45: 80–6. - PubMed
    1. Cheng M, He H, Wang Det al. (2019) Shift work and ischaemic heart disease: meta-analysis and dose-response relationship. Occup Med (Lond); 69: 182–8. - PubMed
    1. Denison HJ, Eng A, Barnes LAet al. (2018) Inequities in exposure to occupational risk factors between Māori and non-Māori workers in Aotearoa New Zealand. J Epidemiol Commun Health; 72: 809–16. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources