Association between type and timing of cleaning work and selected respiratory symptoms
| Wheezing with breathlessness | Ever asthma | Current asthma* | Chronic bronchitis†| Ever rhinitis | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) relative to those who had never worked in cleaning (n=2262), adjusted for age category and smoking status. | |||||
| *Woken by an attack of shortness of breath in the last 12 months, or attack of asthma in the last 12 months, or current use of drugs for asthma. | |||||
| †Regular cough at least three months each year, or regularly bringing up phlegm at least three months each year. | |||||
| Ever worked in cleaning | 1.53 (1.27 to 1.85) | 1.44 (1.12 to 1.85) | 1.73 (1.44 to 2.07) | 1.52 (1.29 to 1.80) | 1.20 (1.06 to 1.35) |
| Current cleaner | 1.37 (1.06 to 1.76) | 1.03 (0.72 to 1.47) | 1.32 (1.04 to 1.69) | 1.41 (1.13 to 1.76) | 1.08 (0.92 to 1.28) |
| Domestic | 1.48 (1.11 to 1.97) | 1.21 (0.82 to 1.79) | 1.46 (1.10 to 1.92) | 1.61 (1.25 to 2.06) | 1.18 (0.97 to 1.42) |
| Non-domestic | 1.17 (0.79 to 1.76) | 0.68 (0.35 to 1.32) | 1.08 (0.72 to 1.61) | 1.08 (0.76 to 1.55) | 0.92 (0.71 to 1.20) |
| Former cleaner | 1.63 (1.32 to 2.02) | 1.68 (1.28 to 2.21) | 2.00 (1.63 to 2.43) | 1.58 (1.31 to 1.90) | 1.27 (1.12 to 1.47) |
| Domestic | 1.69 (1.35 to 2.10) | 1.76 (1.33 to 2.33) | 2.09 (1.70 to 2.57) | 1.67 (1.37 to 2.02) | 1.31 (1.13 to 1.51) |
| Non-domestic | 1.34 (0.85 to 2.11) | 1.22 (0.66 to 2.26) | 1.41 (0.91 to 2.18) | 1.09 (0.71 to 1.66) | 1.11 (0.82 to 1.50) |