Office equipment and supplies: a modern occupational health concern?
The Helsinki Office Environment Study, a population-based cross-sectional study was carried out in Finland in 1991 among 2,678 workers in 41 randomly selected office buildings. The aim was to evaluate the relations between work with office equipment and supplies and the occurrence of eye, nasopharyngeal, skin, and general symptoms (often denoted as sick building syndrome (SBS)), chronic respiratory symptoms, and respiratory infections. Work with self-copying paper was significantly related to weekly work-related eye, nasopharyngeal, and skin symptoms, headache and lethargy, as well as to the occurrence of wheezing, cough, mucus production, sinusitis, and acute bronchitis. Photocopying was related to nasal irritation, and video display terminal work to eye symptoms, headache, and lethargy.
Jaakkola
M S
MS
Department of Epidemiology, School of Hygiene and Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
Jaakkola
J J
JJ
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D001991:Bronchitis / Q000209:etiology; D016288:Computer Terminals; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003308:Copying Processes; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004493:Education; D004864:Equipment and Supplies; D005387:Finland; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012120:Respiration Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000209:etiology; D012307:Risk Factors; D018877:Sick Building Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D014691:Ventilation