Skin symptoms in veterinary assistant staff and veterinarians: A cross-sectional study.
Contact Dermatitis
; 87(3): 247-257, 2022 Sep.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35527367
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Veterinary assistants and veterinarians are at an increased risk of developing an occupational skin disease, for example, irritant/allergic contact dermatitis, contact urticaria and hand eczema (HE).OBJECTIVES:
We aimed to investigate the prevalence of skin problems and the influence of predisposing factors especially among veterinary assistants.METHODS:
We conducted a cross-sectional study among veterinary assistant staff (n = 103) and veterinarians (n = 19). A questionnaire, specific IgE determination and photographs of hands were evaluated for skin symptoms. Logistic regression models assessed predisposing factors.RESULTS:
Over 50% (n = 62/122) of our study population reported hand eczema (HE) in the last 12 months (1-year prevalence). Twenty-seven subjects reported redness and contact urticaria directly after animal contact, 35 had a positive history of allergic contact dermatitis. HE was associated with (i) increased frequency of hand washing (11-15 times per day; OR 4.15, confidence interval [CI] 95% 1.18-14.6, p = 0.027, univariate model) and (ii) unprotected contact to fluids and tensides >5 times per day (OR 4.56, CI 95% 1.53-13.6, multivariate model).CONCLUSIONS:
We observed a high prevalence of self-reported HE among staff in veterinary practices. Excessive hand washing, unprotected contact with irritants and long-term glove use should be avoided.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Urticária
/
Dermatite Irritante
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Dermatite Alérgica de Contato
/
Dermatite Ocupacional
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Técnicos em Manejo de Animais
/
Médicos Veterinários
/
Eczema
/
Dermatoses da Mão
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Etiology_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Contact Dermatitis
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Alemanha