Table 5.
Risk of carpal tunnel syndrome by division and major-level industry groups, stratified by sex (2002–2020)
| Females | Males | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry Group | Cases | HR (95% CI)a | Cases | HR (95% CI)a |
| Agriculture | 35 | 1.42 (1.01–1.98) | 38 | 0.92 (0.67–1.27) |
| Forestry, fishing and trapping | 0 | – | 14 | 1.31 (0.77–2.21) |
| Forestry | 0 | – | 13 | 1.29 (0.75–2.23) |
| Finance, insurance, and real estate | 45 | 1.44 (1.07–1.93) | 44 | 1.53 (1.14–2.07) |
| Finance industries | < 6 | – | < 6 | – |
| Insurance agencies and real estate | 44 | 1.59 (1.18–2.14) | 39 | 1.60 (1.16–2.19) |
| Mines (including milling), quarries and oil wells | < 6 | – | 46 | 1.97 (1.47–2.64) |
| Metal mines | < 6 | – | 23 | 2.16 (1.43–3.26) |
| Quarries and sandpits | 0 | – | 11 | 1.74 (0.96–3.14) |
| Services incidental to mining | 0 | – | 9 | 1.84 (0.96–3.55) |
| Manufacturing | 604 | 1.71 (1.56–1.87) | 852 | 1.43 (1.30–1.56) |
| Food and beverage | 118 | 1.60 (1.33–1.92) | 107 | 1.26 (1.04–1.53) |
| Rubber and plastic products | 77 | 1.69 (1.35–2.12) | 59 | 1.15 (0.89–1.50) |
| Leather and allied | 12 | 2.53 (1.43–4.46) | 0 | – |
| Textile | 39 | 2.26 (1.64–3.10) | 15 | 1.15 (0.69–1.90) |
| Knitting mills | 6 | 2.26 (1.02–5.04) | 0 | – |
| Clothing industries | 9 | 0.86 (0.45–1.66) | 0 | – |
| Wood | 21 | 1.79 (1.17–2.75) | 74 | 1.39 (1.10–1.75) |
| Furniture and fixture | 25 | 1.58 (1.07–2.35) | 31 | 0.81 (0.57–1.15) |
| Paper and allied | 21 | 1.83 (1.19–2.82) | 31 | 1.23 (0.87–1.76) |
| Printing, publishing and allied | 30 | 1.26 (0.88–1.81) | 26 | 1.06 (0.72–1.55) |
| Primary metal | 13 | 2.11 (1.23–3.64) | 60 | 1.37 (1.06–1.77) |
| Metal fabricating | 75 | 1.46 (1.16–1.83) | 186 | 1.11 (0.96–1.29) |
| Machinery | < 6 | – | 13 | 1.74 (1.01–3.00) |
| Electrical product | 42 | 1.42 (1.05–1.93) | 43 | 1.35 (1.00–1.82) |
| Transportation equipment | 124 | 1.82 (1.52–2.18) | 220 | 1.80 (1.56–2.07) |
| Non-metallic products | < 6 | – | 31 | 0.98 (0.68–1.39) |
| Chemical and chemical product | 19 | 1.00 (0.64–1.58) | 33 | 1.35 (0.95–1.90) |
| Miscellaneous manufacturing | 39 | 1.34 (0.97–1.84) | 98 | 1.50 (1.23–1.84) |
| Construction | 39 | 1.17 (0.85–1.60) | 385 | 1.28 (1.15–1.43) |
| General contractors | 17 | 1.09 (0.68–1.76) | 141 | 1.35 (1.14–1.60) |
| Special trade contractors | 22 | 1.22 (0.80–1.86) | 274 | 1.24 (1.10–1.41) |
| Trade | 488 | 1.00 (0.90–1.10) | 507 | 1.03 (0.93–1.14) |
| Wholesale trade | 128 | 0.99 (0.83–1.18) | 238 | 0.96 (0.84–1.10) |
| Retail trade | 358 | 0.98 (0.87–1.09) | 294 | 1.11 (0.98–1.26) |
| Transportation, communication, and other utilities | 125 | 0.90 (0.75–1.07) | 286 | 0.91 (0.81–1.04) |
| Transportation | 66 | 0.81 (0.64–1.04) | 219 | 0.95 (0.83–1.10) |
| Communication | 43 | 0.97 (0.72–1.31) | 22 | 0.56 (0.37–0.86) |
| Electric power, gas and water utilities | 9 | 1.54 (0.80–2.96) | 37 | 1.24 (0.90–1.72) |
| Storage | 7 | 0.81 (0.39–1.71) | 17 | 0.83 (0.51–1.34) |
| Community, business, and personal service | 1251 | 0.83 (0.77–0.89) | 433 | 0.96 (0.86–1.07) |
| Education and related services | 201 | 0.68 (0.59–0.79) | 60 | 0.82 (0.63–1.06) |
| Health and welfare services | 561 | 0.91 (0.83–1.00) | 62 | 1.11 (0.86–1.43) |
| Amusement and recreation | 36 | 0.94 (0.68–1.31) | 28 | 1.08 (0.75–1.57) |
| Business management | 116 | 0.95 (0.79–1.14) | 141 | 1.00 (0.84–1.19) |
| Personal services | 30 | 1.22 (0.85–1.74) | 8 | 0.84 (0.42–1.68) |
| Accommodation and food | 286 | 1.06 (0.94–1.20) | 82 | 0.89 (0.71–1.11) |
| Miscellaneous | 96 | 1.04 (0.85–1.28) | 80 | 1.09 (0.87–1.37) |
| Public administration and defense | 228 | 0.84 (0.73–0.96) | 167 | 0.82 (0.70–0.97) |
| Federal administration | 31 | 0.62 (0.44–0.89) | 21 | 0.88 (0.57–1.35) |
| Provincial administration | 55 | 0.94 (0.72–1.22) | 26 | 0.64 (0.43–0.94) |
| Local administration | 142 | 0.87 (0.74–1.04) | 124 | 0.90 (0.75–1.08) |
| Other government offices | < 6 | – | 7 | 0.98 (0.46–2.05) |
Division level industry groups are bolded, major level occupations are indented
Statistically significant (α = 0.05) increased risks are bolded, and statistically significant decreased risks are italicized
Abbreviations: HR hazard ratio, CI confidence interval
aA 3-year washout and a 3-year follow-up period were applied, with adjustments for birth year and age at start of follow-up