Objective To understand the situation of reported cases with suspected occupational diseases in Chongqing from 2018 to 2023, providing data support for health authorities to predict the risk of occupational diseases.

Methods The data of suspected occupational disease reports in Chongqing from 2018 to 2023 were extracted from the "Occupational Disease and Health Hazard Monitoring Information System" subsystem of the "China Disease Prevention and Control Information System." These data were combined with the annual employment statistics of various industries published by the Chongqing Statistics Bureau. Statistical analysis was conducted on demographic characteristics, report year, disease type, region, enterprise size, economic type, and industry category.

Results From 2018 to 2023, a total of 9 608 suspected occupational disease cases were reported in Chongqing, involving 30 types of occupational diseases across 7 major categories listed in the "Classification and Catalogue of Occupational Diseases." The overall number of suspected occupational diseases showed a declining trend over the years, but the proportion of suspected occupational noise-induced hearing loss increased. The cases were distributed across 39 districts and counties in Chongqing, with 9 164 male cases (95.38%) and 444 female cases (4.62%), predominantly reported in the 40 to 59 age group (8 684 cases, 90.38%). The main disease types were suspected occupational pneumoconiosis and other respiratory diseases (6 076 cases, 63.23%), primarily coal workers' pneumoconiosis (2 708 cases, 44.56%); suspected occupational ear, nose, throat, and oral diseases (3 241 cases, 33.73%), mainly noise-induced hearing loss (3 232 cases, 99.72%); and suspected occupational chemical poisoning (281 cases, 2.92%), mainly benzene poisoning (214 cases, 76.16%). Suspected occupational disease cases were most common in the new areas of the main city, in mining and manufacturing, in medium, small and micro enterprises, and in private enterprises. From 2018 to 2022, the top five industries with the highest incidence rates of suspected occupational diseases were mining (145.063‰), manufacturing (3.086‰), electricity, heat, gas, and water production and supply (0.739‰), scientific research and technical services (0.329‰), and water conservancy, environment, and public facility management (0.227‰). The mining industry consistently had the highest incidence rate of suspected occupational diseases annually, and the manufacturing industry had the most diverse types of suspected occupational diseases. The proportion of suspected occupational disease reports from foreign-invested enterprises and enterprises invested by Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, as well as small and micro enterprises, increased in 2022 and 2023.

Conclusions Noise-induced hearing loss became the most common suspected occupational disease, replacing pneumoconiosis in Chongqing, and silicosis became the most common type of suspected occupational pneumoconiosis, replacing coal workers' pneumoconiosis. Occupational disease prevention efforts in Chongqing should focus on the mining and manufacturing industries, medium, small and micro enterprises, and private enterprises, as well as occupational hazards such as production noise and silica dust.