Health Experience in the past week .....................................................................
We asked the flight attendants about specific health conditions over the previous week to index active or current problems. We gauged the severity by eliciting information about frequency or duration. For example, for each symptom, the flight attendant could respond according to the number of days that he/she experienced the condition in the last week.
In the table below, we note the most frequent conditions (i.e. “Often” or “Everyday”) in red. These conditions were cited by at least 20% of the flight attendants.
The conditions highlighted in blue designate slightly less common conditions in comparison reported by at least 10% of flight attendants.
The more notable conditions in order of most prevalent among flight attendants include:
- sleep problems (35%)
- all types of musculoskeletal pain (between 23-28%)
- sinus congestion (28%)
- fatigue (26%)
- anxiety/stress (20%)
- bloating (20%)
Considering all frequent conditions together, the most prevalent conditions fall into several main categories according to body system affected (listed in no particular order): 1) respiratory (sinus, ear, cough)
2) neurological/psychological (dizziness, loss of coordination/balance, muscle weakness, fatigue, irritability, anxiety, depression)
3) musculoskeletal (general aches and back/shoulder/elbow/wrist/hand/feet pain)
4) eye problems
5) other general problems (bloating)
Percentage of flight attendants reporting condition in past week
(at time of survey)
CONDITION |
In the past week, how many days did you experience the symptom? |
|||||
Never |
Rarely |
Some-times |
Often |
Every-day |
# of Flight Attendants |
|
Eye irritation, pain |
43.3% |
27% |
18.8% |
7.3% |
3.5% |
3,707 |
Blurred /altered vision |
57.2% |
21.6% |
13.7% |
5.1% |
2.4% |
3,623 |
Sinus congestion |
26.5% |
20.5% |
24% |
18.1% |
10.9% |
3,789 |
Ear pain/blockage |
46.3% |
25.6% |
18% |
7.5% |
2.4% |
3,705 |
Nosebleeds/irritation |
72% |
15.7% |
7.3% |
3.7% |
1.3% |
3,666 |
Sore throat/irritated/burn |
55.2% |
24.1% |
13.7% |
5% |
2% |
3,696 |
Cough |
48% |
25% |
16.2% |
6.2% |
4.6% |
3,743 |
Hoarseness/loss voice |
66.2% |
18.6% |
10.1% |
3.5% |
1.6% |
3,704 |
Shortness of breath |
66.3% |
19.0% |
9.8% |
3.5% |
1.5% |
3,721 |
Chest tightness |
76.2% |
14.2% |
7.1% |
1.8% |
.6% |
3,694 |
Chest pain |
84.7% |
10.4% |
3.8% |
,8% |
.2% |
3,671 |
Heart racing/pounding |
67.7% |
19.8% |
9% |
2.7% |
.7% |
3,706 |
Stomach pain |
62.1% |
21.5% |
11.7% |
3.4% |
1.4% |
3,715 |
Nausea |
67.2% |
21.7% |
8.2% |
2.3% |
.5% |
3,703 |
Vomiting |
91.3% |
7.2% |
1.3% |
.1% |
.08% |
3,684 |
Diarrhea |
64.7% |
21.7% |
9.8% |
3.0% |
.8% |
3,703 |
Bloating |
30.4% |
21.0% |
23.4% |
17.2% |
8% |
3,750 |
Fainting |
95.5% |
3.1% |
1.1% |
.3% |
.05% |
3,670 |
Dizziness |
62.4% |
25.3% |
8.5% |
3.1% |
.7% |
3,708 |
Coordination/balance loss |
66.0% |
22.6% |
8.2% |
2.5% |
.8% |
3,702 |
Shaking/tremors |
87.9% |
7.8% |
2.8% |
.8% |
.6% |
3,650 |
Numbness/tingling- |
68.8% |
16.5% |
8.2% |
3.5% |
3% |
3,714 |
Severe headache |
57.9% |
23.9% |
11.6% |
5.5% |
1% |
3,729 |
Confusion, difficulty |
56.3% |
22.5% |
13.2% |
5.4% |
2.5% |
3,737 |
Difficulty concentrating |
45.3% |
30.5% |
15% |
6.8% |
2.5% |
3,746 |
Fatigue/unusual tiredness |
20.4% |
27.3% |
25% |
17.5% |
9.9% |
3,817 |
Anxiety or stress |
30.4% |
29% |
20.7% |
13% |
7% |
3,778 |
Depressed mood |
46.2% |
27.2% |
15.1% |
7.8% |
3.8% |
3,751 |
Apathy |
58.4% |
21.8% |
12.1% |
5.2% |
2.5% |
3,662 |
Irritability |
31.0% |
36.1% |
20% |
9% |
3.8% |
3,696 |
Sleep disturbances |
16.9% |
23.1% |
25% |
20% |
15% |
3,827 |
Alterations in taste/smell |
81% |
11.2% |
5% |
1.8% |
1.1% |
3,706 |
Chemical sensitivity |
77.8% |
10.4% |
6.0% |
3% |
2.7% |
3,684 |
Calf pain |
64.2% |
17% |
11% |
4.6% |
3.1% |
3,687 |
Back pain |
26.4% |
23.2% |
22.7% |
15.6% |
12.1% |
3,787 |
Foot pain |
28.4% |
22.5% |
20.6% |
15.2% |
13.3% |
3,775 |
Shoulder/elbow/ |
31% |
19.7% |
19.8% |
15.3% |
14.1% |
3,792 |
Generalized muscle aches |
30.1% |
24.9% |
21.7% |
12.3% |
11% |
3,775 |
Muscle weakness |
54.7% |
20.8% |
12% |
6.3% |
6% |
3,721 |
