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
. 1995 Aug;28(2):193-205.
doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700280205.

Endemic work-related febrile respiratory illness among construction workers

Affiliations

Endemic work-related febrile respiratory illness among construction workers

C A Epling et al. Am J Ind Med. 1995 Aug.

Abstract

Construction workers building Denver International Airport (DIA) reported work-related respiratory and flulike symptoms of several months duration. We performed a cross-sectional interview study of 495 randomly selected DIA workers from six contractors in comparison with preplacement workers. We defined cases as workers with two work-attributed lower respiratory symptoms and one work-attributed systemic symptom. Case rates were significantly higher among DIA workers (34%) compared with those who had never worked at DIA (2%). Risk factors for illness included exposure to fireproofing (OR, 4.21; 95% CI, 1.95-9.08), work in tunnels and adjoining areas (OR, 3.07; 95% CI, 1.84-5.12), length of DIA employment (OR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.46-0.92), and preexisting bronchitis (OR, 2.43; 95% CI, 1.17-5.05). Our industrial hygiene investigation revealed alkaline dust (pH 11) present at a worksite associated with elevated risk of illness, and we identified airborne Penicillium mold widely distributed indoors at DIA. Clinical evaluation of 26 self-identified symptomatic DIA employees, including bronchoalveolar lavage and biopsy in 10, revealed work-related asthma in three workers and histologic evidence of chronic bronchitis in four who had never smoked. We concluded that future investigations of endemic work-related febrile respiratory illness among construction workers should evaluate its association with indoor exposure to dusts from alkaline fireproofing, Penicillium mold, mycotoxins, and bacterial bioaerosols.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

  • The DIA illness probably was the flu!
    Repsher L, Becker C, Christensen S. Repsher L, et al. Am J Ind Med. 1997 Mar;31(3):366-7; author reply 368-9. doi: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0274(199703)31:3<366::aid-ajim14>3.0.co;2-z. Am J Ind Med. 1997. PMID: 9055961 No abstract available.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources