Performance of two general job-exposure matrices in a study of lung cancer morbidity in the Zutphen cohort.
Data from a general population cohort of 878 men from the town of Zutphen, The Netherlands, were used to evaluate the performance of two general job-exposure matrices. Exposures generated by the job-exposure matrices on the basis of job histories were compared. The validity of those exposures was measured against exposures reported by the participants in 1977/1978. The performance of the different exposure measures was assessed in proportional hazards analyses of lung cancer morbidity incidence. The two general job-exposure matrices generally disagreed with regard to exposure classification because of differences in exposure assessment and level of detail of the job axis. When compared with self-reported exposures, the sensitivity of both job-exposure matrices was low (on average, below 0.51), while the specificity was generally high (on average, above 0.90). Self-reported exposures to asbestos, pesticides, and welding fumes showed elevated risk ratios for lung cancer which were absent for exposures generated by the two job-exposure matrices. Thus, a population-specific job-exposure matrix is proposed as an alternative to general job-exposure matrices developed elsewhere. Such a matrix can be constructed from the results of in-depth interviews of a job-stratified sample of cohort members. Sound validation and documentation of exposure assessment methods used in job-exposure matrices are recommended.
Kromhout
H
H
Department of Air Pollution, Wageningen Agricultural University, The Netherlands.
Heederik
D
D
Dalderup
L M
LM
Kromhout
D
D
D000328:Adult; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003625:Data Collection; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D009017:Morbidity; D009426:Netherlands; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012307:Risk Factors; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D016019:Survival Analysis