Evaluation of two self-administered questionnaires to ascertain dermatitis among metal workers and its relation with exposure to metal working fluids
We performed an exploratory study to evaluate 2 self-administered questionnaires assessing hand dermatitis and to investigate a possible exposure-response relation between dermal exposure to semisynthetic metal working fluids (SMWF) and dermatitis. In a cross-sectional survey on dermatitis, a symptom-based questionnaire and a picture-based skin-screening list were applied in 80 SMWFexposed workers and 67 referents. To evaluate accuracy of the questionnaires, 47 subjects were examined by a dermatologist. Dermal exposure levels to SMWF were assessed on the hands, forearms, and face with an observational method that was validated with a fluorescent-tracer method. The symptom-based questionnaire had a relatively high sensitivity (0.86) but moderate specificity (0.64), the skin-screening list had a low sensitivity (0.36) and a relatively high specificity (0.84). The skin-screening list seemed to represent the more severe cases of dermatitis and showed a significant relation to exposure, for dermatitis on hands, forearms, or face. In epidemiological surveys where workers are not seen by a dermatologist, the skin-screening list seems to be more appropriate to detect cases of dermatitis, as its higher specificity results in less false positives. Alternatively, it would be preferable to apply the symptom based questionnaire; workers with symptoms should be seen by a dermatologist to identify false positives.
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501 biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
Blackwell Publishing, Dinamarca.
2007
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| Subjects: | ALERGIAS, DERMATOSIS, ENFERMEDADES DE LA PIEL, TRABAJADORES, ALLERGIES, SKIN DISEASES, WORKERS, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11056/23503 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0536.2007.01127.x |
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