title: Asthma in chemical workers exposed to aliphatic polyamines.
abstract: Following the identification of an index case of occupational asthma, we assessed the respiratory morbidity in 12 workers exposed to aliphatic polyamines in a chemical factory and in 60 unexposed workers in three other workplaces. Many amine workers reported symptoms of chronic cough (7/12), chronic phlegm (9/12), wheezing (4/12) and exertional breathlessness (3/12). These were significantly more frequent in exposed than in unexposed workers (P < 0.01). They also had significantly greater diurnal variation in peak expiratory flow rates (DV-PEFR) than the unexposed workers (P < 0.01). All four amine workers with wheezing reported onset of symptoms after employment at the factory, and all had DV-PEFR greater than 15%, compared to only one control worker (P < 0.01). A second case of occupational asthma was confirmed by bronchial challenge test. The study indicated a very high risk of asthma and chronic airways disease and a need for stringent measures to protect the health of industrial workers exposed to aliphatic amines in Singapore.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community, Occupational and Family Medicine, National University of Singapore.
authors.forename: T P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Malik
authors.forename: C B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Chee
authors.forename: T H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Cheong
authors.forename: Y T
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002617:Chemical Industry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011073:Polyamines / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012123:Pulmonary Ventilation
chemical_list: D011073:Polyamines