|
Other links
concerning Notifiable Conditions |
|
|
|
Posters |
|
|
|
Associated Programs |
|
|
|
|
|
Surveillance and Reporting Guidelines for
Occupational Asthma
|
back to
Occupational Asthma index page |
|
Disease
Reporting |
|
Purpose of Reporting and
Surveillance |
- To describe the prevalence and incidence of work-related
asthma.
- To characterize the distribution of work-related asthma
across occupation, industry, and region.
- To identify causative agents and factors.
- To discover and investigate potential clusters.
- To develop and implement prevention strategies.
|
|
Reporting Requirements |
- Health care providers: notifiable within one month to
Washington State Department of Labor and Industries’ Safety &
Health Assessment & Research for Prevention (SHARP) program
- Hospitals: notifiable within one month to Washington State
Department of Labor and Industries’ SHARP program
- Laboratories: no requirements for reporting
- Local health
jurisdictions: educate health care providers regarding
reporting requirements to the State
|
|
Reporting Mechanisms |
- Over the phone by calling 1-888-66-SHARP. An automated
voice-messaging system can receive case reports 24-hours a
day.
- By faxing a completed case reporting form to SHARP at
360-902-5672.
- By mailing a completed case reporting form to:
SHARP Program
PO Box 44330
Olympia WA 98504-4330.
Click here to download case reporting.
|
|
|
Case Definition for Surveillance |
|
Clinical Criteria for Diagnosis |
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory
disease of the airways characterized by reversible airway
obstruction or hyperresponsiveness. Symptoms of asthma include
episodic wheezing, chest tightness, cough, and difficulty
breathing. The diagnosis of work-related asthma requires a
complete clinical and occupational history, as well as objective
testing to both diagnose asthma and attribute the onset or
exacerbation of asthma to workplace exposures. The diagnosis of
work-related asthma should be considered in patients with
adult-onset asthma or asthma that worsens during adulthood. |
|
Case Definition |
Any diagnosed or suspected
case of asthma that is caused by or exacerbated by workplace
exposures. |
|
|
A. Description |
|
1. Identification |
In general, the clinical presentation of work-related asthma is
similar to asthma of non-occupational origin. Symptoms include
episodic wheezing, chest tightness, cough, and difficulty
breathing. Patterns of association between asthma symptoms and
workplace exposures can be quite variable. Patients with
immunologic or sensitizer-induced asthma may develop symptoms
months or even years after exposure onset. In these patients,
asthmatic responses may occur less than an hour (early response)
to several hours (late response) following inhalation of the
sensitizing agent – some patients may experience dual responses,
characterized by both early and late asthmatic responses.
New onset work-related asthma
may occur due to sudden high dose irritant exposures. These
workers may then have asthma exacerbations related to any
environmental or occupational trigger. Work-related asthma may
occur in workers with pre-existing asthma when they enter a new
workplace or encounter a new substance in the workplace.
Work-aggravated asthma includes sudden exacerbations of asthma
or gradual increases in the dosages of medicine in association
with exposures in the workplace. |
|
2. Infectious Agent |
Work-related asthma is the most
commonly diagnosed type of occupational lung disease in the
United States and other developed countries. In the United
States, an estimated 11 million workers are potentially exposed
to one or more of the numerous agents currently known to be
associated with the development of asthma. |
|
|
B. Methods of Control |
|
Patients with work-related
asthma may require significant exposure reduction through
product substitution or engineering controls, or possibly,
permanent removal from the workplace. |
|
|
More Information |
|
Contact the Safety and Health Assessment
and Research for Prevention (SHARP) program at the Washington
State Department of Labor and Industries:
Telephone: 1-888-66-SHARP (1-888-667-4277)
Fax: 360-902-5672
Website:
www.lni.wa.gov/sharp |
|
|
