Meta-analysis of relationship between occupational exposure to welding fumes and risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

  Objective  To explore the relationship between occupational exposure to welding fumes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

  Methods  Literature on welding fumes and COPD from databases until 2022 was retrieved, including PubMed, Springer, China Knowledge Network, Wanfang, etc. The quality of articles that met the criteria was evaluated using the Health Research and Quality (AHRQ) scale. The heterogeneity of articles was judged according to I² and P values, and the corresponding effect model was selected. The stability of research results was tested by sensitivity analysis; Begg's and Egger's tests were used to evaluate publication bias.

  Results  A total of 108 relevant articles were retrieved, and 11 studies, including 2 cohort studies and 6 cross-sectional studies, were finally included in this meta-analysis. There were 3 425 COPD patients who had not been exposed to welding fumes and 193 COPD patients who had been exposed to welding fumes. The quality scores of the articles were all above 5 points. The heterogeneity among studies was low (I² = 11.8%), and a fixed-effect model was used to analyze the combined odds ratio (OR). The combined OR value showed that exposure to welding fumes would increase the risk of COPD (OR = 1.39, 95%CI: 1.15-1.69), which still showed that exposure to welding fumes would increase the risk of COPD after controlling for the smoking factor (OR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.10-1.63). Sensitivity analysis confirmed that the results of this study were stable.

  Conclusions  Occupational exposure to welding fumes can increase the risk of COPD in occupational populations. Attention should be paid to the health monitoring of workers exposed to welding fumes, early control of possible conditions, and regular followup after leaving their posts.