Abstract:
Objective To understand the survival time and possible influencing factors of pneumoconiosis patients in Ninghai County, Zhejiang Province who were followed up from 2019 to 2023, and to provide references for prolonging the survival time of pneumoconiosis patients.
Methods Information about pneumoconiosis patients was collected from the sub-module Occupational Disease Follow-Up Management and Follow-Up Excel database of the Occupational Disease and Health Hazards Monitoring Information System. Survival analysis was conducted through applying Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression models.
Results Of the 366 pneumoconiosis patients, 99.73% were male, 71.04% had stage Ⅰ pneumoconiosis, and the disease type was mainly silicosis. The survival rates at 5, 10, and 20 years after diagnosis of pneumoconiosis were 97%, 88%, and 62%, respectively, with a cumulative survival rate of 42%. The median survival time of patients with pneumoconiosis was 32.11 years. Log-rank test found statistically significant differences in the survival curves among pneumoconiosis patients with different pneumoconiosis stages, age at first diagnosis, and pneumoconiosis complications. Cox regression analysis revealed that the risk of reduced survival time in patients with pneumoconiosis stage Ⅲ was 2.184 times higher than that of patients with stage Ⅰ (P=0.007). In comparison with the age of first diagnosis at <50 years old group, the risk of reduced survival time was 3.457 and 7.097 times higher, respectively, in the groups of patients who received the diagnosis at 50‒ and ≥60 years (both P<0.001). The risk of reduced survival time in pneumoconiosis patients with complications was 2.030 times higher than that of patients without complications (P=0.003).
Conclusion Survival time of pneumoconiosis patients in Ninghai County is affected by the age at first diagnosis, pneumoconiosis stage and pneumoconiosis complications. The survival time can be significantly prolonged by timely detection and diagnosis, as well as active prevention and treatment of pneumoconiosis complications.