Risk factors for post-9/11 chronic rhinosinusitis in Fire Department of the City of New York workers

Objectives

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) has high socioeconomic burden but underexplored risk factors. The collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC) towers on 11 September 2001 (9/11) caused dust and smoke exposure, leading to paranasal sinus inflammation and CRS. We aim to determine which job tasks are risk factors for CRS in WTC-exposed Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) firefighters and emergency medical services (EMS) workers.

Methods

This cohort study included a 16-year follow-up of 11 926 WTC-exposed FDNY rescue/recovery workers with data on demographics, WTC exposure, job tasks and first post-9/11 complete blood counts. Using multivariable Cox regression, we assessed the associations of WTC exposure, work assignment (firefighter/EMS), digging and rescue tasks at the WTC site and blood eosinophil counts with subsequent CRS, adjusting for potential confounders.

Results

The rate of CRS was higher in firefighters than EMS (1.80/100 person-years vs 0.70/100 person-years; p<0.001). The combination of digging and rescue work was a risk factor for CRS (HR 1.54, 95% CI 1.23 to 1.94, p<0.001) independent of work assignment and WTC exposure.

Conclusions

Compared with EMS, firefighters were more likely to engage in a combination of digging and rescue work, which was a risk factor for CRS. Chronic irritant exposures associated with digging and rescue work may account for higher post-9/11 CRS rates among firefighters.

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