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Adult onset asthma in non‐allergic women working in dampness damaged buildings: A retrospective cohort study
Author(s) -
Graff Pål,
Bryngelsson IngLiss,
Fredrikson Mats,
Flodin Ulf
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.22952
Subject(s) - medicine , asthma , retrospective cohort study , cohort , hazard ratio , cohort study , incidence (geometry) , epidemiology , demography , pediatrics , environmental health , confidence interval , physics , sociology , optics
Background There is still no consensus about the association between working in dampness‐damaged buildings and new onset of asthma among adults. The purpose of this study was to assess asthma in the staff of two psychiatric clinics where some premises were suffering from dampness. Methods A 20‐year retrospective cohort study was performed using questionnaires. Results Incidence rate ratios (IRR) for asthma were non‐significantly elevated (IRR = 2.3) among exposed individuals. The risk was greater among females (IRR = 3.5, 95% CI 1.0‐16). IRR for non‐atopic women was 8.8 (95% CI 1.4‐196). Adjusting for smoking habits weakened the risks marginally (IRR = 7.3, 95% CI 1.1‐167). The number of male participants was too low to draw conclusion regarding the risk for men. Conclusion The results suggest that working in dampness‐damaged buildings might be a possible health hazard. This finding is most pronounced in non‐atopic females.