Mechanisms of allergy and clinical immunologyAssociations between pre-employment immunologic and airway mucosal factors and the development of occupational allergy
Section snippets
Study design and characteristics
In this prospective longitudinal cohort study 110 starting LAWs working with rats, mice, or both were followed for 2 years. The protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Academic Medical Center of the University of Amsterdam. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants. At inclusion, participants should have had less than 18 months of occupational contact with animals and no sensitization to the animals with which they were working.
The outcome of the study
Study population and occupational setting
Characteristics of the cohort are shown in Table I. At the start of the study, 4 subjects reported previous occupational sensitization to animals or plants. During the study, they had no contact with these allergens. As expected, atopic subjects had significantly higher levels of total IgE (P < .001) and tended to have a lower methacholine threshold (P = .06). At the start of the study, IL-8 and myeloperoxidase levels in the nasal lavage fluid were significantly higher in nonatopic subjects (P
Discussion
In this cohort the incidence of sensitization was very similar to the incidence of laboratory animal allergy reported in previous studies.1, 2, 3 It is described in the literature that sensitization is frequently followed by the development of occupational allergy, which is usually defined as having work-related allergic symptoms in the presence of sensitization.19 This was confirmed in our study. Symptoms of rhinoconjunctivitis were encountered most frequently (73%), and asthma symptoms were
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Cited by (22)
Long term effect and allergic sensitization in newly employed workers in laboratory animal facilities
2015, Respiratory MedicineCitation Excerpt :We also showed that low bronchial responsiveness to methacholine was associated with a lower risk of developing LAA. These findings are in line with previous results in a 2 years follow-up cohort study [22] where atopy in addition with family history of allergy, bronchial methacholine threshold, IgE level and working with rats were associated with an increased risk of becoming sensitized to rat and mice. We observed increased bronchial responsiveness during follow up only in those who were atopic whereas bronchial responsiveness remained unaltered in subjects who were non-atopic at study entry.
Historic overview of allergy research in the Netherlands
2014, Immunology LettersCitation Excerpt :Work-related allergic symptoms are of concern both for employers and employees. Some examples of Dutch contributions to the occupational allergy field are the investigations in the laboratory animal workers [147,148], pig farmers [149], the baking industry [150] and the greenhouse workers [151]. Allergen exposure in the home environment has been investigated in many studies.
Both the variability and level of mouse allergen exposure influence the phenotype of the immune response in workers at a mouse facility
2011, Journal of Allergy and Clinical ImmunologyCitation Excerpt :Relationships observed between the exposure metrics and a positive SPT response and mouse-specific IgG4 levels were robust to adjustment for potential confounders, including age, sex, smoking status, total IgE levels, and respiratory protection use (see Tables E2, E3, and E4 in this article’s Online Repository). In addition, atopy, which has been shown to be a risk factor for sensitization and allergen-specific IgG4 in previous studies,8,23,24 was also a predictor of these outcomes in this study population (see this article’s Online Repository). Most study participants had neither skin test sensitivity nor mouse-specific IgG4.
Advances in environmental and occupational respiratory diseases in 2009
2010, Journal of Allergy and Clinical ImmunologyCitation Excerpt :Induced sputum cell counts may be another useful method for evaluating OA. In a prospective study of laboratory animal workers, Krop et al6 found that new sensitization was correlated most closely with pre-existing evidence of atopy (positive skin test to inhaled allergens) and a total IgE level <100 IU/mL. Pre-employment counseling aimed at such individuals may be able to reduce occupational sensitization by up to 45% to 50%.
Comparison of high- and low-molecular-weight sensitizing agents causing occupational asthma: an evidence-based insight
2024, Expert Review of Clinical ImmunologyInternational consensus statement on allergy and rhinology: Allergic rhinitis – 2023
2023, International Forum of Allergy and Rhinology
Supported by research grand no. 99-25 of the Dutch Asthma Foundation.
Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: D. J. J. Heederik has a research contract with the European Union and the Dutch government. R. Lutter received grant support from AstraZeneca. The rest of the authors have declared that they have no conflict of interest.
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Dr Krop is currently affiliated with the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.