Department of Civil Engineering, Kumasi Technical University, Kumasi, Ghana
Centre for Social Research in Health, UNSW, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
BMJ Open Respir Res. 2023 Jun;10(1). doi: 10.1136/bmjresp-2023-001736.
Emerging evidence in both developed and developing countries indicate that occupational health hazards and diseases among construction workers constitute a significant public health challenge. While occupational health hazards and conditions in the construction sector are diverse, a burgeoning body of knowledge is emerging about respiratory health hazards and diseases. Yet, there is a notable gap in the existing literature in terms of comprehensive syntheses of the available evidence on this topic. In light of this research gap, this study systematically reviewed the global evidence on occupational health hazards and related respiratory health conditions among construction workers.
Using meta-aggregation, guided by the Condition (respiratory health conditions), Context (construction industry) and Population (construction workers) (CoCoPop) framework and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, literature searches were conducted on Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar for relevant studies on respiratory health conditions affecting construction workers. Four eligibility criteria were used in scrutinising studies for inclusion. The quality of the included studies was assessed based on Joanna Briggs Institute's Critical Appraisal tool, while the reporting of the results was guided by the Synthesis Without Meta-analysis guidelines.
From an initial pool of 256 studies from the various databases, 25 studies published between 2012 and October 2022 were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria. In all, 16 respiratory health conditions were identified, with cough (ie, dry and with phlegm), dyspnoea/breathlessness and asthma emerging as the top three respiratory conditions among construction workers. The study identified six overarching themes of hazards that are associated with respiratory health conditions among construction workers. These hazards include exposure to dust, respirable crystalline silica, fumes, vapours, asbestos fibres and gases. Smoking and extended period of exposure to the respiratory hazard were found to increase the risk of contracting respiratory diseases.
Our systematic review indicates that construction workers are exposed to hazards and conditions that have adverse effects on their health and well-being. Given the considerable impact that work-related health hazards can have on the health and socioeconomic well-being of construction workers, we suggest that the implementation of a comprehensive occupational health programme is essential. Such a programme would extend beyond the mere provision of personal protective equipment and would incorporate a range of proactive measures aimed at controlling the hazards and mitigating the risk of exposure to the occupational health hazards.
在发达国家和发展中国家，越来越多的证据表明，建筑工人的职业健康危害和疾病是一个重大的公共卫生挑战。虽然建筑行业的职业健康危害和条件多种多样，但关于呼吸健康危害和疾病的知识正在不断涌现。然而，关于这一主题的现有文献在综合现有证据方面存在明显的差距。鉴于这一研究差距，本研究系统地回顾了全球关于建筑工人职业健康危害和相关呼吸健康状况的证据。
使用元聚合方法，以条件（呼吸健康状况）、背景（建筑行业）和人群（建筑工人）（CoCoPop）框架以及系统评价和荟萃分析报告的首选项目为指导，在 Scopus、PubMed、Web of Science 和 Google Scholar 上搜索有关影响建筑工人呼吸健康状况的相关研究。使用四项纳入标准对研究进行严格审查。根据 Joanna Briggs 研究所的批判性评估工具评估纳入研究的质量，同时根据无荟萃分析综合报告指南指导结果报告。
从各个数据库中最初的 256 项研究中，确定了 25 项发表于 2012 年至 2022 年 10 月的研究符合纳入标准。共有 16 种呼吸健康状况被确定，其中咳嗽（即干咳和有痰）、呼吸困难/呼吸急促和哮喘成为建筑工人中排名前三的呼吸状况。该研究确定了与建筑工人呼吸健康状况相关的六个总体危害主题。这些危害包括暴露于粉尘、可吸入结晶硅、烟雾、蒸气、石棉纤维和气体。吸烟和长时间暴露于呼吸危害被发现会增加患呼吸疾病的风险。
我们的系统评价表明，建筑工人接触到的危害和条件对他们的健康和福祉有不良影响。鉴于工作相关健康危害对建筑工人的健康和社会经济福祉可能产生的重大影响，我们建议实施全面的职业健康计划至关重要。这样的计划将不仅仅局限于提供个人防护设备，还将包括一系列旨在控制危害和减轻职业健康危害暴露风险的积极措施。
