Table 3. Differences in pulmonary function test values across different healthcare professions and compared with matched unexposed groups.
| Parameter |
Surgeons (n=38), median (range) |
Anaesthetists (n=28),
median (range) |
Nurses (n=14), median (range) |
Assistants (n=12), median (range) |
p‑value | |
| FEV1 (L) | 3.21 (2.04 - 3.74) | 3.05 (2.05 - 3.97) | 2.26 (0.79 - 3.51) | 2.22 (0.43 - 2.94) | 0.001* | |
| FVC (L) | 3.43 (2.32 - 4.02) | 3.28 (2.32 - 6.18) | 2.6 (0.94 - 3.12) | 2.63 (0.52 - 3.84) | 0.001* | |
| FEV1/FVC (%) | 93 (68 - 100) | 92 (50 - 100) | 86 (81 - 93) | 84.5 (61 - 100) | 0.001* | |
| PEFR (L/min) | 410 (163 - 500) | 348 (192 - 507) | 309 (115 - 360) | 277 (153 - 325) | 0.001* | |
| Surgeons (n=38), mean (SD) | Matched group, mean (SD) | p-value | Anaesthetists (n=28), mean (SD) | Matched group, mean (SD) | p‑value | |
|
| ||||||
| FEV1 (L) | 3.0 (0.51) | 3.22 (0.37) | <0.001† | 2.94 (0.49) | 3.11 (0.32) | <0.001† |
| FVC (L) | 3.26 (0.48) | 3.48 (0.44) | <0.001† | 3.29 (0.73) | 3.37 (0.33) | 0.018† |
| FEV1/FVC (%) | 92.02 (8.48) | 91.34 (1.61) | 0.559 | 89.36 (9.83) | 91.82 (1.46) | 0.388 |
| PEFR (L/min) | 388.42 (81.06) | 488.87 (55.94) | <0.001† | 368 (82.57) | 454.89 (64.98) | <0.001† |
| Nurses (n=14), mean (SD) | Matched group, mean (SD) | p-value | Assistants (n=12), mean (SD) | Matched group, mean (SD) | p‑value | |
|
| ||||||
| FEV1 (L) | 2.2 (0.6) | 2.53 (0.12) | 0.017† | 2.03 (0.76) | 2.91 (0.51) | 0.002† |
| FVC (L) | 2.45 (0.52) | 2.84 (0.34) | 0.001† | 2.46 (0.91) | 3.07 (0.44) | 0.042† |
| FEV1/FVC (%) | 89.79 (3.83) | 91.43 (3.03) | 0.002† | 82.52 (10.65) | 89.92 (4.75) | 0.024† |
| PEFR (L/min) | 277.43 (81.9) | 380.14 (57.04) | <0.001† | 257.25 (67.02) | 372.75 (98.26) | 0.004† |
FEV1 = forced expiratory volume in 1 second
FVC = forced vital capacity
PEFR = peak expiratory flow rate
SD = standard deviation.
* Significant (p<0.05) according to the Kruskal-Wallis test
† Significant (p<0.05) according to the Mann-Whitney U-test