A 26-year cohort mortality study of French construction workers aged 20 to 64 years.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this report was to study the cause-specific mortality of French workers in the construction industry.


METHODS
From a cohort of 12,788 male workers, standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for the years between 1974 and 1999 for workers aged 20 to 64 years.


RESULTS
All-cause mortality was significantly increased (SMR=111, CI=106-206). Excess mortality was found for cancers (SMR=125, CI=117-134), especially for the oral cavity and pharynx (SMR=134, CI=108-163), digestive (SMR=120, CI=104-137) and respiratory (SMR=143, CI=128-159) systems; cerebrovascular disease (SMR=130, CI=106-158); diseases of the digestive system (SMR=130, CI=113-149), and accidental falls (SMR=158, CI=105-125). Excess risks were limited to blue-collar workers.


CONCLUSIONS
Despite a probable role of lifestyle and potential limitations of the study, elevated mortality was observed for several causes possibly related to occupational factors.
Thuret
Anne
A
Département Santé-Travail, Institut de Veille Sanitaire, Saint-Maurice, France. a.thuret@invs.sante.fr
Geoffroy-Perez
Béatrice
B
Luce
Danièle
D
Goldberg
Marcel
M
Imbernon
Ellen
E
D000328:Adult; D002423:Cause of Death; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005160:Facility Design and Construction; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends*