Association between occupational hazard exposure and elevated total cholesterol among automobile manufacturing plant workers: A retrospective cross-sectional study based on latent class analysis

ObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence of elevated total cholesterol (TC) among workers in an automobile manufacturing plant, as well as to examine the impact of occupational exposure to hazardous factors on their TC levels.MethodsThis was a retrospective cross-sectional study. A latent class analysis was performed using occupational health examination data collected to classify the nine major occupational hazards into five distinct exposure profiles. Multivariate logistic regression models were employed to identify risk factors associated with elevated TC.ResultsA total of 191 workers (27.0%) were diagnosed with elevated TC in the study. Based on latent class analysis, occupational hazards were classified into five distinct groups: Low Exposure Group, Noise Exposure Group, Dust Exposure Group, Organic toxins Exposure Group, and Combined Noise and Harmful Gases Exposure Group. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that exposure to organic toxins and combined noise and harmful gases group was significantly associated with increased odds of elevated TC, with adjusted ORs (odds ratio) of 2.76 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.47-5.30, p=0.002) and 1.95 (95% CI: 1.05-3.70, p=0.038), respectively. Subgroup analyses indicated non-smokers and non-drinkers showed consistently elevated risk.ConclusionOccupational exposure to organic toxins, noise, and harmful gases may contribute to elevated TC levels in automobile manufacturing workers, highlighting the need for prevention strategies in occupational health settings.