Table 1. Baseline and demographical characteristics of the study population.
| Variables | No. (%) of subjects |
|---|---|
| No. (%) of total subjects | 733 (100.0) |
| Smoking | |
| Yes | 134 (18.3) |
| Ex- or no | 599 (81.7) |
| Age, yr | 42.30 ± 9.22 |
| Alcohol drinking* | |
| High | 489 (66.7) |
| Low | 244 (33.3) |
| Blood concentration of cadmium , µg/L | 0.750 ± 0.359 |
| Height, cm | 172.60 ± 5.33 |
| Weight, kg | 73.10 ± 8.94 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 24.50 ± 2.56 |
| HDL, mg/dL | 48.10 ± 11.42 |
| WBC, 103/µL | 6,240.80 ± 1,547.16 |
| Monocyte, % | 6.40 ± 1.96 |
| Monocyte count, 103/µL | 392.80 ± 140.00 |
| MHR | 8.70 ± 4.16 |
| Hypertension† | |
| Yes | 184 (25.1) |
| No | 549 (74.9) |
| Diabetes‡ | |
| Yes | 22 (3.0) |
| No | 711 (97.0) |
| Hyperlipidemia§ | |
| Yes | 72 (9.8) |
| No | 661 (90.2) |
| Job category | |
| Fire extinguisher | 232 (31.7) |
| Fire field investigator | 16 (2.2) |
| Driver | 130 (17.7) |
| Rescue team | 80 (10.9) |
| Paramedic | 89 (12.1) |
| Administrative officer | 177 (24.1) |
Data are shown as mean ± standard deviation or number (%).
BMI = body mass index, HDL = high density lipoprotein, WBC = white blood cell, MHR = monocyte to high density lipoprotein ratio, LDL = low density lipoprotein.
*Participants who drink alcohol almost never to 2–3 times a months were classified as ‘low,’ and those who drink once or more than once a week were classified as ‘high’; †Participants with systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg or previously diagnosed with hypertension were classified as ‘hypertension’; ‡Participants with fasting blood glucose ≥ 126 mg/dL and previously diagnosed with diabetes were classified as ‘diabetes’; §Participants with LDL ≥ 160 mg/dL or total cholesterol ≥ 240 mg/dL or previously diagnosed with hyperlipidemia were classified as ‘hyperlipidemia.’