Work-related infectious diseases among Korean workers compensated under the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Law, 2006-2011

Background: Korea has no surveillance system for work-related infectious disease. However, these diseases are compensated by the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service (KCOMWEL). Objectives: To understand the nature and distribution of compensated occupational infectious diseases in Korea. Methods: We used the KCOMWEL electronic database to analyze compensated cases of work-related occupational infectious disease. We reviewed and confirmed diagnoses excluding denied claims, secondary infections, dermatoid diseases, duplicated cases and those with missing information. We calculated the distribution of work-related infectious disease in Korea by occupation, calendar year, gender, age, and employment duration, as well as the annual compensated claim rates (per million). Results: We included 1,062 compensated cases of work-related infectious disease. The most common was scrub typhus (n=567, 53.4%), followed by tuberculosis (n=227, 21.4%), viral hepatitis (n=55, 5.2%), and viral influenza (n=53, 5.0%). A sudden increase in scrub typhus was observed in 2009. Unskilled laborers, including short-term contract workers in public sectors, were most commonly affected by these diseases, followed by health care professionals. Conclusions: Workers employed in forestry care in the public sectors and in hospitals were most vulnerable to infections. Proper surveillance systems to monitor infectious diseases among vulnerable working groups and improved prevention measures are needed.