title: Excess risk of head and chest colds among teachers and other school workers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Work-related injuries and illnesses in the educational services sector have not been well studied. This analysis examined whether teachers and other school workers are at higher risk of head/chest cold compared to all other workers in the United States.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seven years (1998-2004) of National Health Interview Survey data on currently employed workers were combined to provide a basis for estimating the incidence proportion of head/chest cold.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The adjusted odds ratio for head/chest cold was significantly elevated for teachers and other workers employed at schools compared to all other workers. When examined by month, an excess of increased head/chest cold risk during the school year suggested that a portion of head/chest cold among teachers and other school workers is attributable to their workplace, perhaps due to close contact with students at school.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Head/chest cold, a surrogate for acute respiratory infection, was more common among school workers during the school year and less common during July than for all other workers in the United States. Targeted training for school workers and students may be beneficial to reduce work-related exposure to viruses and bacteria that infect the respiratory system.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, OH 45226, USA. STak@cdc.gov
authors.forename: SangWoo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tak
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Groenewold
authors.forename: Toni
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Alterman
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Geoffrey M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Calvert
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003139:Common Cold / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016272:Occupational Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011336:Probability; D011634:Public Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012574:Schools / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult