Impact of Secondary Prevention in an Occupational High-Risk Group.

Background: A study of medical outcomes among 6857 elderly construction workers who received an initial and at least one periodic follow-up examination as a result of participating in a medical screening program was undertaken.

Methods: We compared results from the initial examination to follow-up examinations delivered at least 3 years after the initial examination for the following outcomes: body mass index (BMI); total serum cholesterol; nonhigh-density lipoprotein (non-HDL) cholesterol; hemoglobin A1c, hypertension; current cigarette smoking; and 10-year cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk scores.

Results: Statistically significant improvements (P < 0.05) were observed for all measures except BMI.

Conclusions: Participation in a periodic medical screening program for elderly construction workers is associated with a favorable impact on common health outcomes. When presented with a program designed for them, blue-collar workers are motivated to seek improvements in their health status.