Prevalence and Risk Factors of Occupational Asthma Among Florists in Turkey

Details

• Personal Author:
  Akpinar-Elci, Muge ; Elci, Omur Cinar ; Odabasi A
• Description:
  Background: There are few studies of occupational asthma among florists. In this study, we evaluated questionnaire-based prevalence and possible risk factors of occupational asthma among florists in Turkey. Methods: We collected data from 60 (71.4%) florist shops with 128 (86.5%) florists selected by a cluster sampling method and investigated occupational history, respiratory, ocular, dermal, and nasal symptoms based on a modified version of the American Thoracic Society questionnaire. We evaluated work-site pulmonary function tests and atopy by skin prick test for the most common allergens in the region (D. farinae, D. pteronyssinus, Mould mix) and flower mix (Aster chinensis, Chrysanthemum koreanum, Dahlia cultorum, Solidago virgaurea, Chrysanthemum leucanthemum). We calculated work intensity from total working years and weekly working hours. We measured humidity and temperature, and evaluated ventilation systems in shops. Florists who reported having anyone of the following symptoms: non-productive cough, dyspnea, chest tightness, or wheezing, were defined as having asthma, and, if those symptoms were related to work, we defined them as occupational asthma. Possible risk factors were analyzed by age- and gender-adjusted logistic models comparing symptomatic and asymptomatic florists. Smoking status had limited effect on the results, so we excluded smoking from the models. Results: The median age was 28.0 years. 85.9% were males, 63.3% were current smokers. The prevalence of occupational asthma was 14.1% (n=18). We observed work related excess risk factors among florists with a high work intensity (OR=7.3, 95% CI=1.1-51.8) and long work duration (OR=5.1, 95% CI=1.2-21.6). Florists with occupational asthma were 5.9 times more likely to have positive a11ergen skin test for flower mix (95% CI=1.4-24.3). We also observed an excess risk of a11ergic rhinitis (OR=13.2, 95% CI=3.1-56.4) and conjunctivitis (OR= 8.4 95% CI=2.4-29.24) among florists with occupational asthma. Conclusion: This study showed that most prominent risk factors of occupational asthma were work intensity, work duration, and specific atopy in florists. We believe that new studies from developing countries are needed to understand etiologic factors of occupational asthma. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Hypersensitivity Occupational Health Respiratory Function Tests Respiratory Hypersensitivity Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Allergic-disorders Allergies Gardeners Occupational-respiratory-disease Pulmonary-function-tests Pulmonary-system-disorders Respiratory-hypersensitivity Respiratory-system-disorders Risk-analysis Risk-factors Spirometry Work-analysis

  More +
• ISSN:
  0025-7818
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary ; Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DRDS - Division of Respiratory Disease Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  450-451
• Volume:
  93
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20033666
• Citation:
  Med Lav 2002 Sep; 93(5):450-451
• Contact Point Address:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Division of Respiratory Diseases Studies, Mail Stop H-2800, 1095 Willowdale Road, Morgantown, WV 26505
• Email:
  mra8@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2002
• NORA Priority Area:
  Disease and Injury: Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  La Medicina del Lavoro
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:56d53407eea488414136462fcd8ab725556e8765a703f064c51be6cb89ad535a080b732402e381b8837c71a8bcc856ec5e39a33039c2a87f4edabe91cf0af19a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/189146/cdc_189146_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 571.78 KB ]