Distribution of asthma by occupation in Washington state

Objectives: Asthma is a common and costly lung disease. We estimate the prevalence of self-reported asthma by occupation in Washington State (WA). Methods: The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Asthma Call-Back Survey (ACBS) is conducted yearly with BRFSS respondents who identify as having asthma. ACBS data for WA 2006-2009 was analyzed. ‘Current' and ‘lifetime' asthma were defined by using the calculated variables for ACBS which combine BRFSS interview and ACBS responses. WA BRFSS includes questions on industry and occupation, and responses were coded into industry and occupational groups. Prevalence ratios (PR) were calculated by occupational groups. Results & Discussion: From preliminary data there were 6,099 respondents to the WA BRFSS ACBS in 2006-2009. Of these, 2,427 workers who were ‘currently employed' had industry and occupation data. The prevalence of ‘current asthma' among WA workers in the ACBS was 60.5% (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 56.9-64.1%). When compared to the reference group of Executive, Administration, and Managerial, two occupational groups had significantly higher PRs of asthma: Administrative Support, Including Clerical (PR 1.21, 95% CI 1.03-1.42%) and Food Preparation and Services (PR 1.32, 95% CI 1.08-1.63%). Conclusions: Some occupations appear to have higher prevalence of asthma than others. The use of occupation data to discern these differences is potentially valuable for targeting prevention efforts to reduce the burden of disease. Routine collection of industry and occupation information would help in identifying industries and occupations with higher burdens of asthma.