Occupational risk factors for asthma among nurses and related healthcare professionals in an international study.
OBJECTIVE
The authors examined the relations between self-reported work tasks, use of cleaning products and latex glove use with new-onset asthma among nurses and other healthcare workers in the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS II).


METHODS
In a random population sample of adults from 22 European sites, 332 participants reported working in nursing and other related healthcare jobs during the nine-year ECRHS II follow-up period and responded to a supplemental questionnaire about their principal work settings, occupational tasks, products used at work and respiratory symptoms. Poisson regression models with robust error variances were used to compare the risk of new-onset asthma among healthcare workers with each exposure to that of respondents who reported professional or administrative occupations during the entire follow-up period (n = 2481).


RESULTS
Twenty (6%) healthcare workers and 131 (5%) members of the referent population reported new-onset asthma. Compared to the referent group, the authors observed increased risks among hospital technicians (RR 4.63; 95% CI 1.87 to 11.5) and among those using ammonia and/or bleach at work (RR 2.16; 95% CI 1.03 to 4.53).


CONCLUSIONS
In the ECRHS II cohort, hospital technicians and other healthcare workers experience increased risks of new-onset current asthma, possibly due to specific products used at work.
Mirabelli
Maria C
MC
Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology, Municipal Institute of Medical Research, Barcelona, Spain. mmirabelli@imim.es
Zock
Jan-Paul
JP
Plana
Estel
E
Antó
Josep Maria
JM
Benke
Geza
G
Blanc
Paul D
PD
Dahlman-Höglund
Anna
A
Jarvis
Deborah L
DL
Kromhout
Hans
H
Lillienberg
Linnéa
L
Norbäck
Dan
D
Olivieri
Mario
M
Radon
Katja
K
Sunyer
Jordi
J
Torén
Kjell
K
van Sprundel
Marc
M
Villani
Simona
S
Kogevinas
Manolis
M
D000328:Adult; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000633:toxicity; D001249:Asthma / Q000209:etiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003902:Detergents / Q000633:toxicity; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D017575:Gloves, Protective; D006281:Health Occupations; D006282:Health Personnel; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D019570:Inhalation Exposure; D020315:Latex Hypersensitivity / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D017056:Medical Laboratory Personnel; D008875:Middle Aged; D009726:Nurses; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D003902:Detergents