Biomedical subjects

Jonas Brisman

Publications and source records attributed to Jonas Brisman.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Incidence of hand eczema in female Swedish hairdressers.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the occurrence of hand eczema in hairdressers in Sweden. METHODS: The occurrence of hand eczema was estimated in a Swedish longitudinal retrospective cohort study including all female graduates from vocational schools for hairdressers from 1970 to 1995. A stratified sample from the general population acted as controls. A self-administered questionnaire including questions on the occurrence of hand eczema, skin atopy, working periods and number of hair treatments performed per week was sent to the participants. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) of hand eczema were estimated. RESULTS: The incidence rate of hand eczema in hairdressers was 23.8 cases/1000 person-years, whereas in hairdressers who were aged <25 years it was 37.1/1000 person-years. The corresponding IRR for hairdressers compared with controls was 2.5 (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.2 to 2.8), and that for younger hairdressers was 3.1 (95% CI 2.6 to 3.5). The mean age at onset of hand eczema was 21.6 years for hairdressers and 21.2 years for controls. The 1-year prevalence of hand eczema was 18.0% for hairdressers and 12.1% for controls. A large number of hair treatments involving exposure to skin irritants and sensitisers were reported. The incidence rate of hand eczema was higher among individuals with a history of childhood eczema, both for hairdressers and for controls, giving an (age-adjusted) IRR of 1.9 and 2.2, respectively. The attributable fraction of hand eczema from skin atopy was 9.6%. A synergistic effect of skin atopy and hairdressing was found on the occurrence of hand eczema. The relative excess risk due to interaction was 1.21 (95% CI 0.21 to 2.21; p = 0.01). CONCLUSION: Hairdressers are highly exposed to skin-damaging substances. The self-reported incidence of hand eczema was substantially higher in female hairdressers than in controls from the general population and than that found previously in register-based studies. For many individuals, onset of hand eczema occurs early in life. Only about 10% of the hand eczema cases among hairdressers would be prevented if no one with skin atopy entered the trade.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Occupational skin exposure and hand eczema among dental technicians-need for improved prevention.

OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to estimate occupational skin exposure, the use of skin protection, and the incidence of hand eczema among dental technicians. METHODS: In a retrospective cohort study, dental technicians (N=2139) and randomly selected population controls (N=2288) received a postal questionnaire on occupational skin exposure, protective glove use, and hand eczema, including the year of onset. The response rate was 57% for the dental technicians and 58% for the controls. RESULTS: Altogether 80% of the dental technicians reported skin exposure to uncured (meth)acrylates (MA), and 87% had skin contact with grinding dust from MA. Thirty-nine percent used protective gloves when handling uncured MA. Twenty-two percent of the currently employed technicians reported participation in obligatory training concerning the handling of thermosetting plastics, and 58% did not know how long normally used gloves protected the skin against uncured MA. Altogether 48% of the dental technicians and 30% of the controls reported more than 10 hand washings a day (P<0.001). For the dental technicians, the incidence of hand eczema was 8.5 cases/1000 person-years during MA-exposed time. For the controls, the incidence was 3.3. The incidence rate ratio for the men was 3.6 (95% CI 2.3-5.6), and for the women it was 2.4 (95% CI 1.7-3.3). CONCLUSIONS: The work of dental technicians involves frequent and unprotected exposure to MA and frequent hand washings. Dental technicians have twice the risk of hand eczema than the general population. Efforts to improve skin protection and increase participation in obligatory training about handling thermosetting plastics are important.

Dental Technicians↗

PubMed2003

The incidence of respiratory symptoms in female Swedish hairdressers.

BACKGROUND: Airway diseases in hairdressers are a concern. The objective of this investigation is to evaluate the risk for three respiratory symptoms, wheeze, dry cough, and nasal blockage, in hairdressers. METHODS: A questionnaire on respiratory symptoms, atopy, smoking, and work history was answered by 3,957 female hairdressers and 4,905 women from the general population as referents. Incidence rates (IR) and incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for the three symptoms were estimated. RESULTS: The IRs of all three studied symptoms were higher in the hairdressers compared with the referents. Smoking modified the effects of cohort affiliation for all three symptoms; the combined effect from hairdressing work and smoking was less than expected. In addition, the effect of cohort affiliation for wheeze was also modified by atopy, and the effect of cohort affiliation for nasal blockage was also modified by calendar year. CONCLUSIONS: Hairdressing work was associated with increased incidences of respiratory symptoms. Smoking had a negative modifying effect.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Sensitisation to occupational allergens in bakers' asthma and rhinitis: a case-referent study.

OBJECTIVES: To study the importance of sensitisation to occupational allergens for the occurrence of asthma and rhinitis in bakers. METHODS: This is a nested clinical case-referent study of bakers based on a cohort of Swedish former bakery students. Cases were asthmatic ( n=25) or rhinitic bakers ( n=20). Randomly selected bakers ( n=44) were referents. All subjects underwent skin prick tests (SPTs) with common allergens, flours, fungal alpha-amylase and the storage mite L. destructor. Indices of airway inflammation were assessed in serum and the nose. RESULTS: Seven of the asthmatics and eight of the rhinitics reported onset of disease during bakery work. Flour SPTs were positive in 43% of the asthmatics or rhinitics vs 16% of referents. The corresponding figures for alpha-amylase were 29%, 25%, and 7%. The odds ratio, adjusted for atopy, for an SPT positive to flour or alpha-amylase for asthmatics with onset during bakery work was 5.8 (95% confidence interval 1.1-32), and 2.6 (0.4-16) for the corresponding rhinitics. The positive predictive value of sensitisation to flour or alpha-amylase in relation to a clinical diagnosis of asthma or rhinitis was 71%. Sensitisation to L. destructor was rare. The indices of airway inflammation were similar in cases and in referents. CONCLUSIONS: Bakers' asthma is associated with sensitisation to flour and/or alpha-amylase, atopy taken into account. A similar association was suggested in bakers' rhinitis. Indices of airway inflammation were of low predictive value for detecting bakers' asthma or rhinitis in this study.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Baker's asthma.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Asthma↗

PubMed2002

Respiratory health among bleachery workers exposed to ozone and chlorine dioxide.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the possibility of occupational exposure to ozone increasing the risk of obstructive airway disease among bleachery workers. : Bleachery workers (N = 129) from two Swedish pulp mills using ozone for bleaching were studied together with referents (N = 80) from adjacent paper mills. The pulp mills had previously used chlorine dioxide as the bleaching agent. Testings included spirometry, methacholine challenge testing, and questionnaires. Area samplings showed sporadic ozone levels exceeding 0.9 ppm. RESULTS: There was a greater prevalence of wheezing (25%) among the bleachery workers with a history of gassings (from ozone, chlorine, or sulfur dioxide) than among those without gassings (18%) and among the referents (13%). Among the current smokers the fraction with a slightly increased bronchial responsiveness to methacholine was greater among the bleachery workers reporting gassings than among those that had not been gassed. For the period from 1992 to 1996, when the mills were using ozone, there was an increased incidence rate of wheezing among the workers in the bleachery (incidence rate ratio 2.3, 95% confidence interval 1.6-5.8). CONCLUSIONS: Repeated exposure to irritants increases the risk of asthma-like symptoms. This finding reinforces the view that repeated peak exposures to irritants must be prevented in pulp mills.

Adult↗