Characterization of occupational diseases in the Mexican population 2020-2024

Abstract

Introduction: Occupational diseases are a health problem that must be addressed since they represent multiple losses, both material and human, therefore, the objective of this work is to carry out an analysis on the characterization of occupational diseases, suffered by beneficiaries of the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) during the period 2020-2024. 

Method: The design is descriptive, cross-sectional with a quantitative approach. The data were derived from the statistical reports from 2020 to 2024 generated by the IMSS. A database was developed in Microsoft Excel to later perform descriptive analyses to generate frequencies, percentages and rates. From this database, comparative analyses were generated regarding the information reported.

Results: A downward trend in the frequency of occupational diseases was observed in the study period. The distribution of occupational diseases by gender showed that women were the most affected in the 2020-2021 period, while men were the most affected population as of 2022. The diseases causing most of the permanent disabilities were back sickness, hearing loss and pneumoconiosis. Health workers were the most vulnerable working population from 2020 to 2022. During the first half of the period, the main cause of deaths due to occupational disease was COVID-19.

Conclusions: The identification of the characteristics of occupational diseases in Mexican workers will provide a firm basis for adequately focusing efforts on their prevention and reduction of costs due to disabilities and deaths.