Thermal discomfort and hypertension in bus drivers and chargers in the metropolitan region of Belo Horizonte, Brazil

This study aimed to assess the relationship between perception of temperature inside the bus and hypertension among 1126 collective transportation workers in metropolitan region of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Thermal discomfort was determined based on the perception of temperature inside the bus. Hypertension was determined if participant had a medical diagnosis of this disease. Prevalence ratios (PR) for hypertension and their respective 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were adjusted using multivariate Poisson regression analysis. The perceptions of temperature inside the bus were tolerable (26.5%), disturbs a little (28.6%), disturbs a lot (34.8%) and unbearable (10.2%). The prevalence of hypertension was 14.3%. The thermal discomfort categories of disturbs a lot (PR = 1.41; 95% CI = 1.02-1.95) and unbearable (PR = 1.75; 95% CI = 1.16-2.63) were independently related to hypertension. Thermal discomfort was associated with a higher prevalence of hypertension. This finding should be considerate in new policies for public transportation.