The office environment is home to several potential triggers, which can cause asthma in some workers, suggests a new study from the UK presented at the recently concluded European Respiratory Society Conference (ERS) International Congress.¹ And, if these triggers are not addressed, they can cause an employee to leave his or her job.

Researchers analysed the Birmingham NHS Occupational Lung Disease Service database (January 2004 – December 2020) and identified 55 patients with an occupational lung disease, who were office workers; 47 (85.5%) of them had been diagnosed with occupational asthma.

Based on their location, the potential triggers were categorised into three groups: Inside the office, office ventilation system and outside the office but in the immediate environment.

A variety of triggers that were the cause of occupational asthma in the study participants were identified. The major sources (printer toner, floor tile adhesive, mould and cleaning products) were found within the internal office environment (50%).

The other triggers (25%) were mould in air conditioning and incorrectly installed ventilation shafts and the external environment (20%) comprising of workshops in the neighborhood, paint and vehicle fumes. The study also found that if these triggers were not dealt with, the affected workers were 100 times more likely to leave their job (OR 101.3 [95%CI 10.4-990.3]).

This study has identified potential sources within the office such as a printer toner, which appear benign, but can cause or exacerbate pre-existing asthma. It also further highlights the fact that a diagnosis of asthma, particularly in office workers, frequently does not take into consideration occupational exposure to asthma triggers. Office work-related asthma therefore quite often remains undiagnosed.

Patients with asthma are advised to avoid potential triggers or allergens. Work from home can be a type of therapeutic approach for office workers with office-related occupational asthma. This would keep them healthy resulting in fewer asthma-related job absenteeism, enhanced work productivity and better quality of life.

Reference

1. Abstract no: PA1904 “Occupational asthma in office workers: a cross-sectional study”, by Christopher Huntley et al; Presented in session, “Occupational rhinitis and asthma” at 13:15-14:15 CEST on Monday 6 September 2021. https://k4.ersnet.org/prod/v2/Front/Program/Session?e=262&session=13568.