Work-related asthma among health care workers, 1993-1997

Details

• Personal Author:
  Davis LK ; Filios, Margaret S. ; Flattery J ; Harrison, Robert ; Pechter E ; Reilly MJ ; Reinisch F ; Rosenman, Kenneth D. ; Schill, Donald P. ; Tumpowsky C ; Valiante D
• Description:
  This issue of the Occupational Lung Disease Bulletin provides a summary of a recently published article about work-related asthma among health care workers. Remember to report suspected and confirmed cases of occupational asthma to the Occupational Health Surveillance Program by phone, fax or mail. Case reporting is mandated by public health regulations, and allows us to identify hazardous exposures in Massachusetts and plan informed prevention strategies. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to reduce barriers you may face in reporting cases of occupational asthma. Case #1 - California - A 45-year old, nonsmoking, female x-ray technician sought emergency medical treatment for throat irritation, cough, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and hives which began five minutes after x-ray developing tanks overflowed at work. Case #2 - Michigan - After ten years working in the same hospital, a male worker in his 40s started a three-month rotation as a radiation therapist in the hospital's cancer center. His duties included pouring a two-part mixture into a plastic bag, sealing it and molding the bag to fit the patient. He developed sneezing, headaches and sinus problems along with chest tightness and slight cough, but did not notice shortness of breath or wheezing. Case #3 - Massachusetts - A 42 year-old, nonsmoking female nurse had been employed at a hospital for over six years when she began to notice respiratory symptoms associated with work. She reported wheezing, cough, chest tightness and shortness of breath, diagnosed as work-related asthma. Case # 4 - New Jersey - A 52 year-old, nonsmoking female worked for nine years in the pulmonary function testing department of an ambulatory care facility. During that time she suffered recurrent symptoms of cough, shortness of breath, wheezing and chest tightness, as well as episodes of sinusitis and bronchitis. An evaluation of the facility revealed that the employees were exposed to glutaraldehyde vapors released from a bucket of sterilizing solution stored in a cabinet. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aldehydes Antineoplastic Agents Asthma Asthma, Occupational Case Reports Emergency Responders Formaldehyde Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Health Personnel Lung Lung Diseases Occupational Diseases Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Radiation Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Smokers Solvents Tobacco Products Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Airway-resistance Antineoplastic-agents Bronchial-asthma Case-studies Cigarette-smoking Emergency-care Emergency-treatment Employee-exposure Health-care Lung-disease Lung-irritants Medical-services Nurses Nursing Occupational-diseases Occupational-exposure Occupational-health Occupational-respiratory-disease Physicians Pulmonary-system-disorders Radiation-therapy Respiratory-system-disorders Smoking Surveillance-programs Vapors Work-environment X-ray-technicians

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• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Massachusetts ; Michigan ; New Jersey ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 2 ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 9 ; 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:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20042677
• Citation:
  SENSOR Occup Lung Dis Bull 2005 Mar; :1-2
• Contact Point Address:
  Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Occupational Health Surveillance Program, 250 Washington Street, 6th Floor, Boston, MA 02108
• CAS Registry Number:
  Glutaraldehyde (CAS RN 111-30-8)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2005
• Performing Organization:
  Massachusetts State Department of Public Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  19880415
• Source Full Name:
  SENSOR Occupational Lung Disease Bulletin
• End Date:
  20050929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:34d836361038d9914945688c258c6a507af1e1e6c28341b332eb966501b6ed07972760bfe6e3d5aeafee4d6a5c864916ca3997e3d152482c77c195be72daa591
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/194825/cdc_194825_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 178.65 KB ]