Overview of occupational health research in Hong Kong

A review was undertaken to collect and collate information on studies that have been done in Hong Kong in the field of occupational health. Both published and unpublished reports related to occupational health research in Hong Kong during the period 1966-1997 were sought. The data collection was performed through various means, including electronic Medline searches and manual searches of local academic and professional journals. Relevant information for each report was abstracted and collated. A total of 357 studies/reports related to occupational health in Hong Kong were identified during the period 1964 to 1997. Few reports were available before 1980. Roughly similar numbers of reports were found for chemical hazards, dust and ergonomics (including psychosocial factors). In addition, there were substantial numbers of reports on physical hazards. Organic solvents, silica dust, compressed air and noise were the specific hazards more frequently reported. The manufacturing and construction industries were the more frequently studied groups. Recent studies have focused more attention on the non-industrial sectors, including the service sector, offices, schools, hospitals and transport. The vast majority of the reports were based on cross-sectional surveys. A significant number of published reports were discussion or review papers. Most studies were less than adequate in terms of documenting causal relationships. Despite the limited resources, occupational health researchers in Hong Kong have made great achievements in the past decades. The study subjects and the numbers of studies reflected major health problems accompanying the development and changes of local industries and trades from time to time.