No abstract

Occupational exposure to airborne pollutants increases the risk of respiratory symptoms and diseases among workers [1]. There is, however, a lack of prospective studies addressing the temporal relationship between airborne dust at work and respiratory symptoms in the general working population. Such studies permit the calculation of the population attributable fraction [2, 3]. The attributable fraction of airborne pollutants at work to respiratory symptoms has not been estimated since 2003 [1]. As the labour market undergoes changes, there is a need for new prospective studies with updated estimates. We aimed to examine the prospective association between dust exposure and respiratory symptoms in the general working population of men. Further, we also aimed to examine if smoking is a possible effect modifier of the association between dust exposure and symptoms.