Table 2.
Prevalence (per 100 population) of chronic respiratory symptoms among the restaurant workers and the control group
| Health symptoms | Women | Men | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurant workers | Controls | RRa (95% CI) | Restaurant workers | Controls | RR (95% CI) | |
| Chronic symptoms | ||||||
| Dyspnea | 52.3 | 27.5 | 1.9 (1.5–2.5) b | 30.7 | 10.5 | 3.1 (1.7–5.7) b |
| Stuffy nose | 45.8 | 27.8 | 1.7 (1.3–2.2) b | 48.0 | 16.9 | 3.1 (2.0–4.8) b |
| Cough | 32.5 | 9.1 | 3.7 (2.3–5.9) b | 32.0 | 16.3 | 2.0 (1.3–3.1) b |
| Wheeze | 25.5 | 11.5 | 2.1 (1.4–3.4) b | 38.7 | 3.5 | 9.9 (4.5–22.0) b |
| Phlegm | 14.4 | 5.8 | 2.5 (1.3–4.8) b | 25.3 | 8.7 | 2.7 (1.5–5.0) b |
| Severe dyspnea | 11.4 | 8.3 | 1.4 (0.8–2.5) | 6.7 | 6.4 | 1.4 (0.9–3.4) |
| Symptoms in the past 30 days | ||||||
| Coughing | 42.5 | 38.1 | 1.1 (0.9–1.5) | 54.7 | 43.0 | 1.3 (1.0–1.8) b |
| Having a cold | 25.2 | 22.2 | 1.1 (0.8–1.6) | 29.3 | 12.8 | 2.4 (1.4–4.2) b |
| Sore throat | 25.2 | 20.8 | 1.2 (0.9–1.8) | 34.7 | 16.9 | 2.1 (1.3–3.4) b |
| Having sputum | 23.8 | 19.9 | 1.2 (0.8–1.8) | 33.3 | 16.9 | 2.2 (1.3–3.5) b |
| Allergic symptom | 13.1 | 11.7 | 1.1 (0.6–1.9) | 10.4 | 6.9 | 1.4 (0.6–3.5) |
| Shortness of breath | 10.3 | 4.5 | 2.1 (1.0–4.4) b | 11.4 | 5.1 | 2.2 (0.8–5.9) |
| Wheezing | 9.2 | 6.3 | 1.5 (0.7–3.0) | 15.6 | 3.4 | 4.8 (1.8–12.7) b |
| Nasal irritation | 5.9 | 4.5 | 1.3 (0.5–3.1) | 7.4 | 4.5 | 1.5 (0.6–3.8) |
| Having any one symptoms | 63.1 | 49.5 | 1.3 (1.1–1.6) b | 73.3 | 50.0 | 1.6 (1.3–1.9) b |
a Pooled risk ratio (RR) analyzed using Cochran’s Mantel-Haenszel statistic adjusted for age (<40 vs ≥40) and smoking (ever smoked vs. never smoke) and correct zero count by adding 1 to each of the 4 cells
b Significantly different between women and men