BACKGROUND Workers in cotton industry are occupationally exposed to various dust-related hazards. The nature of these agents and the respective exposure levels depend on the cotton industry specific sector. These exposures could be associated with respiratory symptoms and changes in lung function parameters. OBJECTIVE To evaluate associations between occupational exposure and respiratory func...

PURPOSE Despite the importance of skin exposure, studies of skin symptoms in relation to exposure and respiratory symptoms are rare. The goals of this study were to describe exposure-response relationships for skin symptoms, and to investigate associations between skin and respiratory symptoms in bakery and auto body shop workers. METHODS Data from previous studies of bakery and auto body sho...

BACKGROUND Results from many studies suggest that workplace exposure to organic dust may lead to adverse respiratory effects in exposed workers. AIM In order to assess the respiratory effects of the workplace exposure to hardwood dust we performed a cross-sectional study of never-smoking male workers employed in parquet manufacture and never-smoking male office workers as a control. MATERIA...

BACKGROUND Elevated endotoxin levels have been measured in ambient air around livestock farms, which is a cause of concern for neighbouring residents. There is clear evidence that occupational exposure to high concentrations of airborne endotoxin causes respiratory inflammation, respiratory symptoms and lung function decline. However, health effects of exposure to low levels of endotoxin are le...