Asthma mortality and occupation in Sweden 1981-1992

The objective of the present study was to investigate mortality attributable to asthma in different occupations. The mortality from asthma among Swedish workers between 1981 and 1992 was investigated by a linkage between official mortality statistics and the occupational information in the 1980 National Census. For each occupation, a smoking-adjusted standardized mortality ratio (SMR) was calculated. The information about smoking habits was obtained from smoking surveys carried out from 1977 to 1979. Only occupations with more than five cases were considered in the analysis. Significantly increased mortality from asthma was found among male farmers (smoking-adjusted SMR = 146; 95% confidence interval [CI] 105-187) and male professional drivers (smoking-adjusted SMR = 144, 95% CI = 101-209) and female hairdressers (smoking-adjusted SMR = 332, 95% CI = 102-525). The increased mortality among three occupational groups (hairdressers, farmers, and professional drivers) out of 46 groups analyzed may be random occurrences. However, farmers and hairdressers are exposed to agents causing asthma, indicating that the increased mortality may be attributable to occupational exposure.