Han Soo Song

Cardiovascular Disease Risk of Bus Drivers in a City of Korea

ObjectiveTo prevent the occurrence of CV events such as MI and stroke among professional drivers in Korea, bus drivers were compared to other occupations through the Framingham risk scoring system (FRS) or metabolic syndrome (MS) of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment methods.MethodsIn October 2012, a health examination survey was conducted for 443 male bus drivers in a big city. Their CVD risk factors were compared to those of a ‘total employed’ (A group) and ‘crafts and machine operators’ (B group) extracted from Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES, 2010) data by using FRS and MS. We calculated proportions of the CVD risk factors distribution between bus drivers and the A, B groups by the bootstrapping method. The Odds ratio (OR) between CV event risk combining MS with CHD equivalent risk of FRS and occupational factors like shift patterns and professional driving duration/age ratios (PDAR) of bus drivers was calculated through multinominal logistic regression.ResultsThe proportion of BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 was 53.9% and waist circumference ≥ 90cm was 40.9% among bus drivers. Hypertension and MS prevalence of bus drivers was 53.3%, 49.9% which is higher than 17.6%, 22.6% in the A group and 19.7%, 23.8% in the B group respectively. OR of high CV event risk in alternate shift was 2.58 (95% CI 1.33~5.00) in comparison with double shift pattern and OR in PDAR ≥ 0.5 was 2.18 (95% CI 1.15~4.14).ConclusionMiddle aged male drivers in a big city of Korea stand a higher chance of developing CV event than other professions of the same age.

Lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and related factors in Korean firefighters

Objectives The job of firefighting can cause lumbar burden and low back pain. This study aimed to identify the association between age and lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and whether the association differs between field and administrative (non-field) firefighters. Methods Subjects were selected using a stratified random sampling method. Firefighters were stratified by geographic area, gender, age and type of job. First, 25 fire stations were randomly sampled considering regional distribution. Then firefighters were stratified by gender, age and their job and randomly selected among the strata. A questionnaire survey and MRI scans were performed, and then four radiologists used Pfirrmann classification methods to determine the grade of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration. Results Pfirrmann grade increased with lumbar intervertebral disc level. Analysis of covariance showed that age was significantly associated with lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration (p<0.05). The value of β (parameter estimate) was positive at all lumbar intervertebral disc levels and was higher in the field group than in the administrative group at each level. In logistic regression analysis, type of job was statistically significant only with regard to the L4–5 intervertebral disc (OR 3.498, 95% CI 1.241 to 9.860). Conclusions Lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration is associated with age, and field work such as firefighting, emergency and rescue may accelerate degeneration in the L4–5 intervertebral disc. The effects of field work on lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration were not clear in discs other than at the level L4–5.

Comparison of facet joint degeneration in firefighters and hospital office workers

BackgroundThere are few published studies on the relationship between occupational lumbar load and facet joint degeneration (FJD). This cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the effect of physical lumbar load on FJD by comparing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of firefighters (FFs) and hospital office workers (HOWs).MethodsWe randomly sampled 341 male FFs and 80 male HOWs by age stratification. A questionnaire and clinical examination, including MRI of the lumbar spine (T12-S1), were conducted. FJD was diagnosed and graded by using the classification of Pathria et al., and reclassified into two groups as follows: no FJD (grade 0) and FJD (grades 1, 2, and 3). The prevalence of FJD was analyzed according to occupational group.ResultsThe prevalence of FJD ranged from 31% (L1–L2) to 75% (L4–L5) in the FFs, and from 18% (L1–L2) to 69% (L4–L5) in the HOWs. After adjustment for age, body mass index, and frequency of physical exercise, the adjusted odds ratios (OR) for FJD in the FFs were significantly higher than those in the HOWs at all lumbar spinal levels, except for L3–L4 (L1–L2: OR, 2.644; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.317–5.310; L2–L3: OR, 2.285; 95% CI, 1.304–4.006; L4–L5: OR, 1.918; 95% CI, 1.037–3.544; L5–S1: OR, 1.811; 95% CI, 1.031–3.181).ConclusionThis study shows that FFs exhibit a greater likelihood of having FJD than HOWs after controlling for other risk factors of FJD. This suggests that the physical occupational demands of FFs affect their risk of developing FJD.