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Volume 13, Number 12—December 2007
Research

Swine Workers and Swine Influenza Virus Infections

Gregory C. Gray*Comments to Author , Troy McCarthy*, Ana W. Capuano*, Sharon F. Setterquist*, Christopher W. Olsen†, Michael C. Alavanja‡, and Charles F. Lynch*
Author affiliations: *University of Iowa College of Public Health, Iowa City, Iowa, USA; †University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, Madison, Wisconsin, USA; ‡National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA;

Main Article

Table 1

Characteristics of study participants at enrollment*

Variables AHS swine-exposed, no. (%),
n = 707 AHS nonswine-exposed, no. (%),
n = 80 University controls, no. (%), 
n = 79
Sex†
Male 455 (64.4) 3 (3.8) 26 (32.9)
Female 252 (35.6) 77 (96.3) 53 (67.1)
Age group, y
24–45 71 (10.0) 19 (23.8) 56 (70.9)
46–54 179 (25.3) 22 (27.5) 13 (16.5)
55–89 457 (64.6) 39 (48.8) 10 (12.7)
Mean age‡
56
51.1
35.3
Received influenza vaccine in the past 4 y
Yes 392 (55.5) 43 (53.8) 44 (55.7)
No/unsure 315 (44.6) 37 (46.3) 35 (44.3)
Swine influenza vaccine in 1976*
Yes 62 (8.8) 4 (5.0) 1 (1.3)
No 506 (71.6) 53 (66.3) 78 (98.7)
Unsure 132 (18.7) 22 (27.5) 0
Missing
7 (1.0)
1 (1.3)
0
Currently work with nursery or finishing swine
Nursery swine 18 (2.6) 0
Finishing swine 126 (17.8) 0
Both 168 (23.8) 0
No 391 (55.3) 80 (100.0)
Missing
4 (0.6)
0

Years worked in swine production
Never 0 76 (95.0)
<1 1 (0.1) 0
1–4 10 (1.4) 0
5–10 38 (5.4) 0
>10 650 (91.9) 0
Missing
8 (1.1)
4 (5.0)

On average, how often do you see or touch swine, other than the swine on the farm where you work?
Never 270 (38.2) 49 (61.3)
Rarely 344 (48.7) 24 (30.0)
Monthly 27 (3.8) 0
Weekly 27 (3.8) 0
Every day 14 (2.0) 1 (1.3)
Missing
25 (3.5)
6 (7.5)

How long have you lived on this or other swine farm?
Never 15 (2.1) 18 (22.5)
<1 y 1 (0.1) 1 (1.3)
1–4 ys 4 (0.6) 2 (2.5)
5–10 y 18 (2.6) 8 (10.0)
>10 y 636 (90.0) 42 (52.5)
Missing
33 (4.7)
9 (11.3)

Work in a slaughterhouse or meat processing plant
Yes 4 (0.6) 2 (2.5)
No 674 (95.3) 75 (93.8)
Missing 29 (4.1) 3 (3.8)

*AHS, Agricultural Health Study; AHS swine-exposed, participants from the A HS who reported working in swine production; AHS nonswine-exposed, participants from the AHS who denied ever working in swine production (96.3% female and among these females 75.5% were spouses of the AHS swine–exposed); university controls, faculty, staff, and students from the University of Iowa who denied ever working in swine production.
†Statistically significant considering a 95% confidence level by Fisher exact test for the 3 groups.
‡Statistically significant considering a 95% confidence level by analysis of variance test for the 3 groups.

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Page created: July 06, 2010
Page updated: July 06, 2010
Page reviewed: July 06, 2010
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