Post-9/11 Peripheral Neuropathy Symptoms among World Trade Center-Exposed Firefighters and Emergency Medical Service Workers

Bibliographic Data

ID15468845
AuthorsHilary L Colbeth (0000-0002-4033-975X, Fire Department of the City of New York, Bureau of Health Services, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA), Hilary Colbeth (0000-0003-0750-2735, New York City Fire Department), Rachel Zeig‐Owens (0000-0002-8679-2306, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, corresponding author), Rachel Zeig-Owens (Fire Department of the City of New York, Bureau of Health Services, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA), Mayris P Webber (0000-0002-8322-4573, Albert Einstein College of Medicine), David G Goldfarb (0000-0003-2682-7543, New York City Fire Department), Theresa Schwartz (0000-0001-6606-4072, New York City Fire Department), Theresa M Schwartz (Fire Department of the City of New York, Bureau of Health Services, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA), Charles B Hall (0000-0001-9982-8120, Albert Einstein College of Medicine), David J Prezant (0000-0001-9562-0330, Albert Einstein College of Medicine)
Year2019
Volume16
Issue10
Pages1727-1727
Publication date2019-05-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph16101727
PMID31100846
OpenAlexW2946451211
LanguageEN
References cited34

Peripheral neuropathy can result from numerous conditions including metabolic disorders, inflammatory disease, or exposure to environmental or biological toxins. We analyzed questionnaire data from 9239 Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) World Trade Center (WTC)-exposed firefighters and emergency medical service workers (EMS) to evaluate the association between work at the WTC site and subsequent peripheral neuropathy symptoms using the validated Diabetic Neuropathy Symptom (DNS) score. We grouped the population into an "Indicated" group with conditions known to be associated with paresthesia ( N = 2059) and a "Non-Indicated" group without conditions known to be associated ( N = 7180). The level of WTC exposure was categorized by time of arrival to the WTC. Overall, 25% of workers aged 40 and older reported peripheral neuropathy symptoms: 30.6% in the Indicated and 23.8% in the Non-Indicated groups, respectively. Multivariable logistic models performed on the Non-Indicated group, and on the Non-Indicated in comparison with non-WTC exposed National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), found that the highest level of WTC-exposure was significantly associated with DNS positive outcomes, after controlling for potential confounders. In conclusion, this study suggests that symptoms of peripheral neuropathy and paresthesias are common and are associated with WTC-exposure intensity

Business · Diabetes mellitus · Geography · Medical emergency · Occupational safety and health · Pathology · Peripheral neuropathy · Service (business · Service personnel · Service worker · World trade center · Injury Epidemiology and Prevention · Medicine · Occupational Health and Performance · Pregnancy-related medical research · Emergency Medicine

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access