Table 4.
Oil spill response and clean-up work and lung function among workers (n=6,294)
| Linear Regression | Poisson Regression | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||||
| n | Beta (95% CI) a | nc | PR (95% CI)a,b | ||
| Job Class | |||||
|
| |||||
| FEV1, mL | Support | 606 | Ref | 230 | Ref |
| Land | 1029 | −22 (−79, 36) | 417 | 1.02 (0.91, 1.13) | |
| Decon | 1248 | −71 (−127, −14) | 522 | 1.11 (1.00, 1.24) | |
| Water | 920 | 11 (−47, 70) | 268 | 0.98 (0.86, 1.11) | |
| Operations | 1298 | −21 (−78, 35) | 354 | 1.05 (0.93, 1.19) | |
| Response | 1193 | 0.1 (−56, 57) | 307 | 0.98 (0.87, 1.11) | |
| FVC, mL | Support | 606 | Ref | 237 | Ref |
| Land | 1029 | −4 (−71, 63) | 428 | 0.99 (0.89, 1.11) | |
| Decon | 1248 | −60 (−126, 6) | 538 | 1.08 (0.97, 1.20) | |
| Water | 920 | 22 (−47, 90) | 255 | 0.95 (0.84, 1.08) | |
| Operations | 1298 | 8 (−58, 73) | 330 | 0.98 (0.87, 1.11) | |
| Response | 1193 | 16 (−49, 82) | 309 | 0.97 (0.86, 1.10) | |
| FEV1/FVC% | Support | 606 | Ref | 190 | Ref |
| Land | 1029 | −0.26 (−0.94, 0.42) | 340 | 1.04 (0.90, 1.20) | |
| Decon | 1248 | −0.43 (−1.09, 0.24) | 394 | 1.04 (0.90, 1.20) | |
| Water | 920 | 0.08 (−0.62, 0.77) | 337 | 1.01 (0.88, 1.16) | |
| Operations | 1298 | −0.45 (−1.11, 0.22) | 458 | 1.08 (0.94, 1.24) | |
| Response | 1193 | −0.21 (−0.88, 0.45) | 379 | 1.02 (0.88, 1.17) | |
|
| |||||
| Potential exposure to dispersantd | |||||
|
| |||||
| FEV1, mL | No | 5242 | Ref | 1777 | Ref |
| Yes | 790 | −6 (−48, 37) | 238 | 0.99 (0.90, 1.10) | |
| FVC, mL | No | 5242 | Ref | 1762 | Ref |
| Yes | 790 | −4 (−53, 46) | 260 | 1.07 (0.97, 1.17) | |
| FEV1/FVC% | No | 5242 | Ref | 1766 | Ref |
| Yes | 790 | −0.09 (−0.60, 0.41) | 229 | 0.95 (0.85, 1.06) | |
|
| |||||
| Potential exposure to burning oil/gase | |||||
|
| |||||
| FEV1, mL | None | 5609 | Ref | 1909 | Ref |
| Low/medium | 507 | 8 (−43, 59) | 139 | 0.98 (0.86, 1.11) | |
| High | 68 | −183 (−316, −49) | 20 | 1.16 (0.81, 1.64) | |
| FVC, mL | None | 5609 | Ref | 1908 | Ref |
| Low/medium | 507 | 14 (−45, 73) | 141 | 0.99 (0.87, 1.12) | |
| High | 68 | −125 (−280, 31) | 19 | 1.04 (0.74, 1.48) | |
| FEV1/FVC% | None | 5609 | Ref | 1883 | Ref |
| Low/medium | 507 | −0.18 (−0.78, 0.42) | 159 | 1.02 (0.90, 1.16) | |
| High | 68 | −1.93 (−3.50, −0.36) | 25 | 1.38 (0.99, 1.92) | |
Abbreviations: FEV1, forced expiratory volume in 1 second; FVC, forced vital capacity; mL, milliliters; CI, confidence interval; PR, prevalence ratio; Decon, decontamination; Land, land clean-up; Water, water clean-up
Adjusted for: age, height, height2, weight, gender, ethnicity, race, pre-spill diabetes, pre-spill lung disease, education, employment, previous oil industry experience, previous oil spill clean-up work, residential proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, smoking, secondhand smoke
Prevalence ratio of having a lung function measurement in the lowest vs. highest tertiles
Indicates number of those in the specified exposure group who have lung function in the lowest tertile
n=262 missing due to unknown dispersant status
n=110 missing due to unknown burning oil/gas status