Psychosocial distress and associated factors among pneumoconiosis patients: a cross-sectional study

Pneumoconiosis is a chronic pulmonary disease characterized by diminished physical function, impaired mental health, and deteriorated socioeconomic status. The study aims to evaluate the status of psychosocial distress and identify its associated factors in patients with pneumoconiosis.

This cross-sectional study enrolled 369 patients with pneumoconiosis admitted to the Hunan Prevention and Treatment Institute for Occupational Diseases between July 2022 and March 2023. Psychosocial distress was assessed using the Distress Thermometer (DT) scale and the accompanying Problem List. An exploratory multivariable linear regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with psychosocial distress, and sensitivity analyses were conducted to examine the robustness of the results.

All participants were men, with a mean age of 58.60 ± 7.43 years. Most of patients had low education levels, long exposure duration and one or more complications or comorbidities. The mean DT score was 5.42 ± 2.45, and 75.88% of patients reported clinically relevant psychosocial distress (DT score≥4). Breathing, insurance/financial, loss of memory/concentration were the main problems for psychosocial distress. Factors associated with psychosocial distress included advanced disease stage, comorbid diabetes, and medium education level.

Psychosocial distress was common among the patients with pneumoconiosis included in our study. Breathing problems, financial concerns, and advanced disease progression were associated with higher levels of psychosocial distress. Future multi-center studies with probability sampling and inclusion of female patients are needed to confirm and extend these results.