Module 4: Organic Dusts - Health Effects Of Wood Dust |
Respiratory Symptoms | General Symptoms | Skin Symptoms | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Upper airways | Bronchial system | Lung parenchyma | ||
* Nasal hypersecretion; obstruction; reduced nasal clearance |
* Asthma (Type 1 or delayed type) caused by: African maple, cedar, cherry, redwood, iroko, other. |
* Extrinsic allergic alveolitis Caused by fungi in bark/wood flour (Penicilium, Mucor, Aspergillus, Thermoactinomyces) |
* Organic dust toxic syndrome (ODTS) | * Contact dermatitis Due to the toxic effects of dust particles |
* Olfactory dysfunction | *Hyperreactive airways |
*Lung function impairment Decreased DLCO, FVC |
*Erythema-multiforme like reactions Due to tropical woods, resins & wood preservatives: alkaloids, quinones, catechols, terpenes, glycosides |
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* Increased degree of metaplastic changes of nasal mucosa | * Chronic bronchitis | |||
* Nasopharyngeal cancer - Ethmoidal sinuses common - Types: Adeno (ethmoidal) Squamous (maxillary) Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma - Woods: Hardwood (beech, oak), Softwood |
* Lung function impairment (smokers and non-smokers)- Lower FEV1, FEV1/FVC | |||
Note: * Health effects due to alkaloids, acids or other natural constituents present in particles caused by sanding, sawing, lathing wood preservatives. * Distinguish between the commercial name and scientific name to ascertain health effects. * Special examinations: allergic skin and serum tests, spirometry, bronchial challenge tests (histamine/metacholine or specific wood), nasal biopsy (carcinoma). * Skin prick testing with wood extracts have a low predictive value for occupational asthma (IgE not raised). * For fungi: positive history of exposure obtained by detection of fungal contaminants in air or precipitins in serum. |
Postgraduate Diploma in Occupational Health (DOH) - Modules 3 – 5: Occupational Medicine & Toxicology by Prof Rodney Ehrlich & Prof Mohamed Jeebhay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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