Cardiovascular risk factors among blue- and white-collar employees in an enterprise

Authors

  • Sawanee Srijaroentham Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • Soontorn Supapong Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • Thanapoom Rattananupong Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • Wichai Aekplakorn Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • Prin Vathesatogkit Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand

Keywords:

Cardiovascular disease, blue-collar employees, white-collar employees

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular disease is a non-communicable disease with increasing mortality rate each year. Several studies revealed that the incidence of cardiovascular disease was related to socioeconomic status and occupation. Thus, it is important to reduce risk factors for cardiovascular disease by considering socioeconomic status and occupation.

Objective: To study the relationship between risk factors for cardiovascular disease among individuals with different occupations as classified by socioeconomic factors.

Methods: This study was a retrospective study based on 2nd EGAT Study Project from 1998 - 2015. Occupation groups were classified based on the International Standard Classification of Occupations by International Labour Office (ILO). They consisted of a group of white-collar employees and a group of blue-collar employees. The potential incident of cardiovascular disease in the samples was monitored by cardiologist and neurologist for 17 years. Data were analyzed by multiple logistic regression.

Results: A total of 2,890 subjects consisted of 1,692 white collar and 1,198 blue collar employees. The results indicated that the cardiovascular disease incidence rate in the white-collar employees was 3.60 cases per 1,000 persons per year. Factors affecting the incidence included being male, having abdominal obesity, hypertension, and smoking. In contrast, the cardiovascular disease incidence rate in blue-collar employees was 5.93 cases per 1,000 persons per year. Factors affecting the incidence included diabetes, hypertension,
and LDL cholesterol level.

Conclusion: Risk factors for cardiovascular disease should be reduced. The risk reduction in a group of blue-collar employees should be prioritized by preventing and controlling the incidence of diabetes, hypertension and LDL-cholesterol level. Whereas the risk reduction in white-collar employees should concern the incidence of metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and smoking.

Downloads

Published

2019-01-15

Issue

Section

Original article