Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Republic of Korea.
Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Soonchunhyang University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
PLoS One. 2020 Feb 14;15(2):e0228853. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0228853. eCollection 2020.
Dust and fumes are complex mixtures of airborne gases and fine particles present in all environments inhabited by people. This study investigated the relationship between occupational dust exposure levels and mental health problems such as depression or anxiety, fatigue, and insomnia or sleep disturbance. We analyzed data from the third and fourth Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) conducted by the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency in 2011 and 2014. We performed chi-square tests to compare the different baseline and occupational characteristics and mental health status according to occupational dust exposure levels. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for mental health symptoms (fatigue, depression or anxiety, and insomnia or sleep disturbance) were calculated using adjusted multiple logistic regression models. A total of 78,512 participants (43,979 in men, 34,533 in women) were included in this study. Among them, 6,013 (7.7%) and 2,625 (3.3%) reported "moderate" and "severe" dust exposure, respectively. Among those who answered "yes" to depression or anxiety, fatigue, insomnia or sleep disturbance, 50 (4.6%), 961 (4.8%), and 123 (5.9%), respectively, demonstrated "severe" occupational dust exposure. Compared to "low" levels of dust exposure, "moderate" and "severe" exposure increased the risk of depression and anxiety (OR = 1.09, 95%CI: 0.88-1.36; OR = 1.16, 95%CI: 0.87-1.58, per exposure respectively); however, this was not statistically significant. For fatigue, significance was observed for "moderate" 1.54 (1.46-1.64) and "severe" 1.65 (1.52-1.80) exposure levels. "Severe" levels increased the risk of insomnia or sleep disturbance (OR = 1.52, 95%CI: 1.25-1.85). These results suggest that the "dust annoyance" concept of mental health, which may be explained by a neurocognitive mechanism, is plausible. Occupational "dust annoyance" has been linked to workers' mental health status, particularly in terms of fatigue and sleep disturbance; a dose-response relationship has been observed. Workers should be protected against dust to support their health and productivity.
粉尘和烟尘是空气中存在的气体和细颗粒物的复杂混合物，存在于人类居住的所有环境中。本研究调查了职业性粉尘暴露水平与心理健康问题（如抑郁或焦虑、疲劳、失眠或睡眠障碍）之间的关系。我们分析了 2011 年和 2014 年由韩国职业安全与健康署进行的第三次和第四次韩国工作条件调查（KWCS）的数据。我们进行了卡方检验，以比较根据职业性粉尘暴露水平的不同基线和职业特征以及心理健康状况。使用调整后的多因素逻辑回归模型计算了心理健康症状（疲劳、抑郁或焦虑以及失眠或睡眠障碍）的比值比（OR）和 95%置信区间（95%CI）。共有 78512 名参与者（男性 43979 名，女性 34533 名）纳入本研究。其中，分别有 6013 名（7.7%）和 2625 名（3.3%）报告了“中度”和“重度”粉尘暴露。在回答抑郁或焦虑、疲劳、失眠或睡眠障碍为“是”的人群中，分别有 50 名（4.6%）、961 名（4.8%）和 123 名（5.9%）表现出“重度”职业性粉尘暴露。与“低”水平的粉尘暴露相比，“中度”和“重度”暴露增加了抑郁和焦虑的风险（OR=1.09，95%CI：0.88-1.36；OR=1.16，95%CI：0.87-1.58，每暴露分别）；然而，这并不具有统计学意义。对于疲劳，“中度”（1.54，1.46-1.64）和“重度”（1.65，1.52-1.80）暴露水平具有统计学意义。“重度”暴露增加了失眠或睡眠障碍的风险（OR=1.52，95%CI：1.25-1.85）。这些结果表明，“粉尘烦恼”这一心理健康概念是合理的，它可能可以用神经认知机制来解释。职业性“粉尘烦恼”与工人的心理健康状况有关，尤其是疲劳和睡眠障碍；已经观察到了剂量-反应关系。应该保护工人免受粉尘侵害，以支持他们的健康和生产力。
