Epidemiological Survey of Chronic Diseases on Manufacturing Employees (Escome): Design and Methodology of a Large Cross-Sectional Study Publisher

Summary: ESCOME study finds hyperlipidemia & anxiety prevalent among Iranian steel workers, linking job & lifestyle factors to chronic diseases. #OccupationalHealth #ChronicDisease

Roohafza H¹ ; Feizi A^{1, 2} ; Tirani SA³ ; Rabiei K⁴ ; Bahonar A⁵ ; Alikhasi H⁴ ; Sarrafzadegan N⁴
Source: Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health Published:2020

Abstract

Background and objectives: The epidemiological survey of chronic diseases on manufacturing employees (ESCOME) was designed to a) assess the prevalence of chronic physical and mental diseases b) investigate socio-demographic, psychological and lifestyle determinants of chronic physical and mental diseases c) investigate job-related determinants of chronic physical and mental diseases among a large sample of Esfahan steel company (ESCO) employees. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at 2015 in two main phases among employees of ESCO, Isfahan, Iran. In the first phase, validated self-administered questionnaires were used to assess quality of life, mental health, lifestyle and job-related variables. In the second phase, clinical, biomedical and anthropometric indices were evaluated in the occupational medicine center of ESCO. Furthermore, a self-report questionnaire was used to collect comprehensive information about socio-demographic factors, smoking habits and chronic physical diseases. Results: Totally, 3063 employees from various departments of ESCO were recruited in the current study. The participants’ mean age was 36.74 years (SD = 7.30, ranged from 21 to 64) and 91.5% of them were male. The participants predominantly worked in rotational shifts (55%) and 63.5% were low-level blue-collar employees. Hyperlipidemia (29.7%) and anxiety (8.9%) were the most prevalent physical and mental diseases respectively. Conclusions: The ESCOME provided an opportunity to enhance our knowledge about the epidemiology and determinants of chronic physical and mental diseases among Iranian manufacturing employees. © 2019 INDIACLEN