Work related symptoms, sensitisation, and estimated exposure in workers not previously exposed to laboratory rats

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cullinan P ; Gordon S ; Lowson D ; McDonalds JC ; Newman-Taylor AJ ; Nieuwenhuijsen MJ ; Tee RD ; Venables KM
• Description:
  A 7 year longitudinal study was undertaken of workers at high risk of developing occupational asthma due to contact with laboratory animals. This report concerned workers at three institutions specializing in small animal research in the United Kingdom, using almost exclusively rats. Surveys were conducted with 323 subjects. Questionnaires were completed by 315 subjects and skin prick tests by 295. Of the 315 subjects, 98 reported at least one work related symptom. Eye and nose symptoms were the most frequently reported, followed by skin and then by chest symptoms. There was little consistent evidence of a relation between work related symptoms and exposure intensity at the time of survey. Positive skin tests to rat urinary aeroallergen (RUA) were significantly more common in high exposure categories of either dust or aeroallergen. The relations were stronger in atopic subjects but were unrelated to smoking. Positive skin tests to rat urinary extract were also more frequent with increased exposure. This was true of smokers and nonsmokers. The authors conclude that there was a strong association between work related symptoms and specific sensitization, and that urinary proteins may be the primary agent responsible for laboratory animal allergy. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biological Products Epidemiology Laboratories Lung Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety

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• Keywords:
  Biological-material Laboratory-animals Laboratory-workers Lung-function Occupational-exposure Respiratory-system-disorders Risk-factors Rodents
• ISSN:
  1351-0711
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  51
• Issue:
  9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00222930
• Citation:
  Occup Environ Med 1994 Sep; 51(9):589-592
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1994
• Performing Organization:
  University of California - Davis
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19900930
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20020929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:11523f33d6b1d0b705a3ce1b6f958b5b3b992f6f22110dd266117a97d4b0e2ef2d84a7a7c7168eeb213d2b592a922d52bc5d7559e29c042fdc516160a0499c87
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/205894/cdc_205894_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 801.28 KB ]