Hand eczema caused by soaps and other irritants in the workplace may lead to unemployment or prolonged sick leaves from work for some individuals, according to an article in the March issue of Archives of Dermatology.
Hand eczema or dermatitis is characterized by redness and inflammation of the hands, often due to irritants in soap, chemicals or detergents. "Occupational hand eczema (OHE) has become a disease of increasing importance during recent decades because of its serious consequences, such as frequent eruptions and risk of prolonged sick leave," background information in the article states. OHE also greatly affects quality of life (QOL). Past studies name OHE as the most frequently recognized occupational disease in Denmark and many Western countries.
Rikke Skoet Cvetkovski, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Copenhagen, Hellerup, Denmark, and colleagues studied patients with OHE to identify predictive risk factors for the disease. Patients listed in the Danish National Board of Industrial Injuries Registry as having OHE between Oct. 1, 2001, and Nov. 10, 2002, received questionnaires regarding sick leave, loss of job, depression, health-related quality of life and their eczema's severity. A follow-up questionnaire was sent one year after the first was returned. Of the 621 patients who responded to the first questionnaire, 564 (386 women and 178 men) completed the follow-up.