[Analysis of the association between occupational benzene series exposure and obstructive ventilatory disorder]

Objective: To explore the association between exposure to single and mixed benzene series and obstructive ventilatory disorder (OVD), and to provide scientific evidence for the prevention and control of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in occupational population. Methods: From January 2023 to January 2024, a cross-sectional study was conducted on the occupational population in industries involving benzene series exposure in Guangdong Province. Occupational health examination data of workers and monitoring data of benzene series in their working environments were collected. Generalized linear models were used to explore the association between single benzene series and OVD, and weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression models were employed to analyze the association between mixed exposure to benzene series and OVD, and to calculate the contribution of each individual benzene series. Results: A total of 24465 workers with occupational exposure to benzene series were included, among whom 5550 had OVD. After adjusting for covariates such as gender and age, both single and mixed exposure to benzene series were positively associated with OVD (P<0.05). Among them, xylene (w=0.416) and toluene (w=0.370) contributed the most to the overall effect on OVD. Moreover, gender, enterprise type, and industry type showed significant interaction effects with specific benzene series (P<0.05). Female workers, foreign-invested enterprises, and manufacturing workers had a higher risk of OVD under the exposure to specific benzene series. Conclusion: Occupational exposure to benzene series is positively associated with the risk of OVD. Proactive measures should be taken to control benzene series exposure levels to reduce the incidence of COPD in the occupational population.