Noh Eunbi, Seo Songwon, Lee Dalnim, Cha Eun Shil, Cho Minsu, Jang Won Il, Nam Eun Woo
National Radiation Emergency Medical Centre, Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Department of Health Administration, College of Health Science, Yonsei University, 1, Yeonsedae-Gil Heungeop-Myeon, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
BMC Public Health. 2025 Jul 3;25(1):2329. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-23543-0.
Radiation exposure may increase the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS). However, evidence regarding low-dose exposure remains scarce. This study investigated the link between occupational radiation exposure and MetS incidence among Korean radiation workers.
We analyzed a national cohort of 129,802 Korean radiation workers enrolled in the National Dose Registry between 1984 and 2017, with follow-up based on a linked National Health Information Database. MetS was defined according to the criteria of the American Heart Association, as adapted by the Korean Society for the Study of Obesity. Standardized incidence ratios were calculated to compare the incidence of MetS between radiation workers and the general population. Poisson regression models were used to estimate relative risks and excess relative risks by radiation dose, after adjusting for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors.
Of the 129,802 workers, 40,369 (31.1%) developed MetS. The standardized incidence ratio was 0.85 [95% confidence interval: 0.84, 0.86], indicating a lower incidence than that in the general population; however, non-destructive testing workers with poor lifestyle factors had a relatively higher risk of MetS than those in other occupations. Across the cohort, an increased risk of MetS associated with radiation doses was not observed with adjustment for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, while it varied depending on sex, lag periods, and duration of employment.
Overall, low MetS risk was observed among radiation workers. However, outdoor field workers frequently exposed to elevated levels of radiation should minimize high-risk behaviors-such as smoking and alcohol consumption, known risk factors for MetS or other occupational diseases. Further study is needed to investigate a more sophisticated dose-response association with the incidence of Mets through long-term follow-up, considering relevant organ dose and a latent period as well as pre-existing components of MetS before radiation exposure.
辐射暴露可能会增加代谢综合征（MetS）的风险。然而，关于低剂量暴露的证据仍然很少。本研究调查了韩国辐射工作者职业辐射暴露与MetS发病率之间的联系。
我们分析了1984年至2017年期间纳入国家剂量登记处的129802名韩国辐射工作者的全国队列，并基于链接的国家健康信息数据库进行随访。MetS根据美国心脏协会的标准定义，并由韩国肥胖研究学会进行了调整。计算标准化发病率以比较辐射工作者和一般人群中MetS的发病率。在调整社会人口学和生活方式因素后，使用泊松回归模型估计辐射剂量的相对风险和超额相对风险。
在129802名工人中，40369名（31.1%）患了MetS。标准化发病率为0.85[95%置信区间：0.84，0.86]，表明发病率低于一般人群；然而，生活方式因素较差的无损检测工人患MetS的风险相对高于其他职业的工人。在整个队列中，在调整社会人口学和生活方式因素后，未观察到与辐射剂量相关的MetS风险增加，但其因性别、滞后时间和就业持续时间而异。
总体而言，辐射工作者中观察到的MetS风险较低。然而，经常暴露于高水平辐射的户外现场工作者应尽量减少高风险行为，如吸烟和饮酒，这些是MetS或其他职业病的已知风险因素。需要进一步研究，通过长期随访，考虑相关器官剂量、潜伏期以及辐射暴露前MetS的既有成分，来研究与MetS发病率更复杂的剂量反应关联。
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