Baseline characteristics of 5753 Swedish men in a general population study, by different noise exposure levels
| Low exposure <75 dB(A) n=2930 | Medium exposure 75–85 dB(A) n=2467 | High exposure >85 dB(A) n=356 | Noise peaks unlikely, n=3718 | Noise peaks maybe, n=757 | Noise peaks likely, n=1278 | Overall, n=5753 | |
| Mean age, years (SD) | 55.2 (2.1) | 55.3 (2.0) | 55.3 (2.0) | 55.3 (2.1) | 55.2 (2.0) | 55.3 (2.0) | 55.3 (2.1) |
| Mean cholesterol, mmol/L (SD) | 6.4 (1.04) | 6.4 (1.04) | 6.4 (1.12) | 6.4 (1.04) | 6.4 (1.09) | 6.4 (1.04) | 6.4 (1.05) |
| Mean SBP, mm Hg (SD) | 145.3 (19.6) | 146.3 (19.6) | 146.1 (19.6) | 145.7 (19.6) | 145.4 (19.1) | 146.4 (19.8) | 145.8 (19.6) |
| Mean BMI, kg/m2 (SD) | 25.4 (3.1) | 25.8 (3.3) | 25.8 (3.0) | 25.5 (3.2) | 25.5 (3.1) | 25.9 (3.3) | 25.6 (3.2) |
| BMI <18.5, % (n) | 0.5 (15) | 0.3 (8) | 0.3 (1) | 0.5 (18) | 0.3 (2) | 0.3 (4) | 0.4 (24) |
| BMI 18.5 to <25, % (n) | 47.0 (1376) | 43.0 (1061) | 40.2 (143) | 46.1 (1712) | 45.7 (346) | 40.9 (522) | 44.9 (2580) |
| BMI 25 to <30, % (n) | 45.3 (1328) | 47.1 (1163) | 50.0 (178) | 45.4 (1687) | 45.6 (345) | 49.8 (637) | 46.4 (2669) |
| BMI ≥30%, (n) | 7.2 (211) | 9.5 (235) | 9.6 (34) | 8.1 (301) | 8.5 (64) | 9.0 (115) | 8.3 (480) |
| Diabetes, % (n) | 2.7 (80) | 2.9 (71) | 3.4 (12) | 2.8 (105) | 3.3 (25) | 2.6 (33) | 2.8 (163) |
| Hypertension, % (n) | 21.5 (629) | 22.3 (551) | 21.6 (77) | 21.7 (808) | 19.9 (151) | 23.3 (298) | 21.8 (1257) |
| Ever smoker, % (n) | 73.3 (2148) | 76.8 (1894) | 77.8 (277) | 74.3 (2763) | 72.8 (551) | 78.6 (1005) | 75.1 (4319) |
| High strain, % (n) | 7.3 (215) | 16.7 (413) | 9.6 (34) | 13.8 (512) | 12.0 (91) | 4.6 (59) | 11.5 (662) |
BMI is the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the body height in metres.
BMI, body mass index; SBP, systolic blood pressure.