The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is requesting
public comment on the content and conduct of a nationally
representative survey of truck drivers’ safety and health. The goal of
the survey is to collect information on truck driver health, sleep
disorders, fatigue, working conditions, and non-fatal injuries.



In response to needs cited by stakeholders for more detailed data on
prevalence of health conditions and risk factors, working conditions,
injury causes and outcomes, and health behaviors among truck drivers, a
national survey of truck driver safety and health is being planned as
part of the NIOSH transportation research program. This project will
document occupational safety and health status of truck drivers. An
estimated 1,594,980 U.S. workers were employed as heavy and
tractor-trailer truck drivers in 2004. The 2004 fatality rate for U.S.
heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers was 48.2 per 100,000 workers,
approximately 11 times the rate for the general worker population. In
2004, the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses estimated
63,570 non-fatal injuries among heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers
– the second highest number among all occupations. Previous studies
have shown truck drivers to be at increased risk for low-back pain;
heart attack; hypertension; ulcers; cancers of the bladder, lung,
prostate, and stomach; and premature mortality. Fatigue and sleep apnea
among truck drivers have been shown to be associated with truck crashes
and may contribute to stress and chronic disease. Increased risk of
disease may be due to interactions between working conditions, health
behaviors, and hazardous exposures.

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/review/public/110/default.html