title: Occupational upper airway disease: how work affects the nose.
abstract: Chronic inflammation of the upper airways is common and can arbitrarily be divided into rhinitis and rhinosinusitis. Infection and allergy represent two well-characterized and most frequently diagnosed etiologies of upper airway inflammation. Persistent upper airway inflammation caused by agents inhaled in the work environment represents a diagnostic challenge in clinical practice, and its pathophysiology has been little studied. Occupational rhinitis is a recognized medical condition with diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines. In contrast, only limited evidence is available about the relationship between work exposures and rhinosinusitis. This review aims at providing a comprehensive overview of the available literature on occupational upper airway disease with a focus on pathophysiological mechanisms and with an emphasis on the current unmet needs in work-related upper airway disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Laboratory of Clinical Immunology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Hox
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Steelant
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Fokkens
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Nemery
authors.forename: P W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Hellings
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D009784:Occupational Diseases; D015995:Prevalence; D012140:Respiratory Tract Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D012220:Rhinitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: irritants; occupational diseases; rhinitis; rhinosinusitis