Factors Related to Lung Capacity and Abnormal Respiratory Symptoms Among Construction Workers in Bangkok

Abstract

This cross-sectional analytic study aimed to study factors related to lung capacity and abnormal respiratory symptoms of construction workers in Bangkok. Forty-eight construction workers were included by using simple random sampling. Personal information, work history, and data on use of protective equipment were collected by using the interview questionnaire. The lung capacities of construction workers were measured by a portable spirometer. Data were collected from November 2020 to January 2021. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics with the Chi-square test, Fisher's Exact Test, and Pearson Correlation coefficient analysis. The study found that gender (p = 0.005), type of respiratory protection equipment (p = 0.031), and respiratory protection equipment using training (p = 0.030) were correlated with construction workers’ lung capacity. Also, workers’ body mass index was moderately correlated with the lung capacity of construction workers (r = -0.375, p = 0.009). In total, four different factors were associated with workers’ long capacity when measuring statistical significance at p-value less than 0.05.