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A Cross-sectional Analysis of Acute Injuries Among US Coast Guard Responders to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Taj Keshav1, Jordan McAdam, Hristina Denic-Roberts
1From the Department of Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland (T.K., J.M., H.D.-R., J.A.R.); Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Bethesda, Maryland (J.M.); Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Bethesda, Maryland (H.D.-R.); Division of Occupational, Environmental, and Climate Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California (M.O.G.); United States Coast Guard Headquarters, Directorate of Health, Safety, and Work Life, Washington, DC (D.L.T.); and Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina (L.S.E.).
Objective:
We investigated factors associated with acute injury among US Coast Guard responders to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Methods:
Self-reported data across five domains (demographic, operational, military, environmental, and comorbidities) were evaluated as potential risk factors for self-reported injuries experienced while deployed (slips, trips, and falls and penetrating injuries). Adjusted prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.
Results:
Factors associated with slips, trips, and falls included increasing age, Hispanic ethnicity, Unknown race/ethnicity, service in the Selected Reserve, junior enlisted rank, engaging in operational response duties over longer durations, self-reported crude oil exposure, use of heat-susceptible personal protective equipment, musculoskeletal symptoms, reduced sleep, and high overall exposure based on a latent class variable. Factors associated with penetrating injuries were similar, though also included time outdoors and fatigue.
Conclusions:
The environment defined by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill was associated with increased acute injury prevalence in oil spill responders.
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