title: Work-related stress and asthma: results from a workforce survey in New Zealand.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We assessed the association between work-related stress and asthma in a cross-sectional workforce survey in New Zealand.
  
  
  METHODS
  Men and women randomly selected from the Electoral Roll were invited to take part in a telephonic interview, which collected information on current workplace exposures and respiratory symptoms. Participants rated how stressful they found their current job on a five-point scale. We conducted unconditional logistic regression to calculate prevalence odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for job stress and both current and adult-onset asthma, adjusting for age, sex, smoking, and deprivation. Analyses were also stratified by sex, smoking status, body mass index, and age group.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results were based on 2903 interviews. Participants with very or extremely stressful jobs were twice as likely to have current asthma (OR = 1.98; 95% CI = 1.52-2.58) and 50% more likely to have adult-onset asthma (OR = 1.50; 95% CI = 1.05-2.15) compared to those with not at all or mildly stressful jobs. This association was evident for both sexes and was not explained by either occupation, age, body mass index, or smoking, although the results did differ by smoking status.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study adds to the sparse evidence on the relationship between work-related stress and asthma in adult working populations.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Public Health Research, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand. a.j.eng@massey.ac.nz
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eng
authors.forename: Andrea 't
authors.initials: A'
authors.lastname: Mannetje
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pearce
authors.forename: Jeroen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Douwes
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009520:New Zealand / Q000453:epidemiology; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology; D015995:Prevalence; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult