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Hand eczema, risk factors and microbial skin contamination in the Norwegian waste sorting industry: a cross-sectional study

2026-01Journal article Open access
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datacite.subject.sdg03:Saúde de Qualidade
dc.contributor.authorAlfonso, Jose Hernán
dc.contributor.authorGraff, Pål
dc.contributor.authorViegas, Carla
dc.contributor.authorLossius, Astrid Haaskjold
dc.contributor.authorEriksen, Elke
dc.date.accessioned2025-12-16T09:55:33Z
dc.date.available2025-12-16T09:55:33Z
dc.date.issued2026-01
dc.description.abstractIntroduction: Hand eczema, skin barrier function, and skin microbial contamination among waste workers are underexplored. This study aims to assess: (1) the prevalence and risk factors of hand eczema, (2) the levels of transepidermal water loss (TEWL), and (3) skin microbial contamination in waste sorting workers. Methods: Using the Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire-2002, data were collected from 69 waste sorting workers and 25 office personnel. TEWL was measured with a Tewameter (TM 300, Courage+ Khazaka Electronic, Köln). Microbial skin samples were collected from the left dorsal hand with sterile swabs (Copan, Italy) and cultured. Analyses included descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression. Results: The hand eczema prevalence was 25% among waste workers and 40% in office personnel. The prevalence of hand eczema was significantly lower among exposed workers compared to controls (p = 0.012). TEWL and fungal concentrations were comparable across groups. Atopic dermatitis (AD) and nicotine use were significant predictors of HE. The prevalence of hand eczema experienced during the past week was significantly associated with elevated bacterial concentrations (p value = 0.05) in both groups. Conclusions: Waste sorting workers had up to 2.4 times higher prevalence of hand eczema compared with the general population, but a lower prevalence than office workers in the same industry. These findings may reflect a potential healthy worker effect. The potential role of bacterial concentrations in the occurrence of hand eczema warrants further investigation.eng
dc.identifier.citationAlfonso JH, Graff P, Viegas C, Lossius AH, Eriksen E. Hand eczema, risk factors and microbial skin contamination in the Norwegian waste sorting industry: a cross-sectional study. Contact Dermatitis. 2026;94(1):60-6.
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/cod.70037
dc.identifier.issn0105-1873
dc.identifier.issn1600-0536
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.21/22322
dc.language.isoeng
dc.peerreviewedyes
dc.publisherWiley
dc.relation.hasversionhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cod.70037
dc.relation.ispartofContact Dermatitis
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.subjectOccupational health
dc.subjectOccupational exposure
dc.subjectBioaerosols
dc.subjectDermatitis
dc.subjectFungi
dc.subjectMicroorganisms
dc.subjectPersonal protective equipment
dc.subjectSkin health
dc.subjectTransepidermal water loss
dc.subjectWaste handling
dc.subjectWorkplace safety
dc.subjectNorway
dc.titleHand eczema, risk factors and microbial skin contamination in the Norwegian waste sorting industry: a cross-sectional studyeng
dc.typejournal article
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.endPage66
oaire.citation.issue1
oaire.citation.startPage60
oaire.citation.titleContact Dermatitis
oaire.citation.volume94
oaire.versionhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85
person.familyNameViegas
person.givenNameCarla
person.identifier.ciencia-idEE1E-C639-D70F
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-1545-6479
person.identifier.ridB-7217-2013
person.identifier.scopus-author-id55443609700
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationb5fa5da4-50c3-4b88-ae20-1bc63cb485f7
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryb5fa5da4-50c3-4b88-ae20-1bc63cb485f7

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