Separately, high job strain alone was associated with an 83% higher risk of developing AFib, and effort-reward imbalance alone was associated with a 44% greater risk.
Recognizing and addressing these stressors at work may be an effective strategy to prevent atrial fibrillation in adults, researchers said.
Also known as AFib or AF, atrial fibrillation is the most common form of arrhythmia – an abnormal heart rhythm.
Previous research linked high job strain and effort-reward imbalance at work with an increased risk of coronary heart disease.
More than one-third of participants had been diagnosed with coronary heart disease or heart failure before their AFib incidence.
Research Highlights:.
Compared to workers who are not subjected to these work stressors, adults in Canadian white-collar jobs who experience high levels of job strain and whose significant efforts are met with low rewards (such as low salary or recognition) may be at 97 percent higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation, also known as AF or AFib, an irregular heart rhythm condition.
In addition, a 44 percent increased risk of developing AFib was linked to an effort-reward imbalance and an 83 percent increased risk of developing high job strain alone.
Researchers found that identifying and managing these workplace stressors may be a useful tactic for preventing atrial fibrillation in adults.
restricted until four in the morning. M. CT/5 A. me. ET on Wednesday, August. 14, 2024.
DALLAS, Aug. 14, 2024 — Stress at work brought on by workload pressure and an imbalance between efforts made and results. According to recent research published today in the open access, peer-reviewed Journal of the American Heart Association, rewards received may raise the risk of atrial fibrillation.
Arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, is most commonly known as atrial fibrillation, or AFib or AF. It may result in other cardiovascular complications, such as heart failure or stroke. The American Heart Association’s 2024 heart disease and stroke statistics predict that by 2030, over 12 million Americans will have AFib.
High job strain and an unbalanced effort-reward at work have been associated in the past with a higher risk of coronary heart disease. According to the study’s senior author Xavier Trudel, Ph.D., this is the first investigation into the detrimental impact of both psychosocial stressors at work on atrial fibrillation. D. an associate professor at Laval University in Quebec City, Canada, who specializes in occupational and cardiovascular epidemiology.
According to Trudel, “our study suggests that work-related stressors may be relevant factors to include in preventive strategies.”. In order to promote healthy work environments that are advantageous to employees as well as the companies where they work, it is necessary to identify and address psychosocial stressors at work. “.
Trudel and colleagues investigated the effects of job strain, which is defined as a work setting where workers experience high job demands, like a heavy workload and strict deadlines, and low control over their work, having little influence over how they carry out their assignments and make decisions.
The study also evaluated the effort-reward imbalance. This happens when workers put in a lot of effort at work, but they feel that their pay, benefits, or job security are not commensurate with their efforts or performance.
Researchers looked through 18 years’ worth of follow-up data from medical database records for almost 6,000 Canadian adults working in white-collar jobs. What the analysis revealed was:.
Workers who reported high job strain had an 83 percent increased risk of AFib development compared to those who were not affected by the stressors.
Workers who reported an effort-reward imbalance were 44 percent more likely to be at risk than those who did not; and.
A 97 percent increased risk of AFib was linked to the combined perceptions of high job strain and effort-reward imbalance.
According to Trudel, “further research efforts should investigate the effectiveness of workplace interventions to reduce psychosocial stressors that may also reduce the risk of AFib.”. A prior organizational intervention that our research team carried out with the goal of lowering psychosocial stressors at work was demonstrated to be successful in lowering blood pressure. A few examples of organizational adjustments made during the intervention were introducing flexible work schedules, delaying the start of a major project to avoid adding to the workload, and arranging meetings between managers and staff to talk about day-to-day issues. “.
The study has several limitations. First, since all of the participants were Canadian white-collar workers, such as managers, professionals, and office workers, the findings might not apply to other kinds of workers or workers abroad.
Examine the specifics, context, or layout.
The PROspective Quebec (PROQ) Study on Work and Health, which began in the Quebec region in 1991–1993, recruited white-collar workers from 19 public and semi-public organizations in order to gather data.
In all, 5,926 workers—49% men and 51% women—were examined in this analysis. At the start of the study (1999–2001), their average age was 45, and by the time of the follow-up (Dec. (2018)). Adult White people made up the majority of study participants.
Workplace stress was measured using questionnaires that respondents self-reported.
186 AFib cases were found through the analysis; of those, 19% reported high job strain, 25% felt there was an effort-reward imbalance, and 10% reported dealing with both stressors at the same time.
Prior to their incidence of AFib, over one-third of the participants received a diagnosis of heart failure or coronary heart disease.
By controlling for a wide range of socioeconomic characteristics (sex, education), health risks (diabetes status, high blood pressure), and lifestyle factors (smoking, alcohol consumption), the study measured the work-related stressors using self-reported questionnaires specifically on job strain and effort-reward imbalance.
The manuscript includes a list of co-authors, disclosures, and funding sources.
Peer review is applied to research published in the scientific journals of the American Heart Association. Each manuscript contains statements and conclusions that are exclusively the study authors’ own and may not represent the Association’s policies or viewpoints. Regarding their accuracy or dependability, the Association makes no representations or guarantees. The Association is mostly funded by donations from individuals; foundations and corporations, such as manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, devices, and other items, also contribute money and support particular Association events and programs. Strict policies are in place at the Association to ensure that these relationships don’t affect the science content. Here you can find the Association’s overall financial data as well as revenues from device manufacturers, health insurance providers, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, and manufacturers.
Further Sources:.
On the right column of the release link, http://newsroom, there is multimedia available. heart.org/news/stress-at-work-may-raise-the-risk-of-an-irregular-heart-rhythm?preview=fda43df8a3977e18e323b52c3e660d44.
Following August. 14, access the manuscript via the internet.
AHA news release: Men’s risk of heart disease doubled when they had a demanding job with little compensation for their efforts (Sept. By 2023.
AHA press release: Peripheral artery disease risk is elevated in individuals experiencing work-related stress (April 2020).
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