Occupational skin diseases

Unatoč napretku medicine, profesionalne bolesti kože predstavljaju ozbiljan medicinski i socijalni problem. Kao jedne od najčešćih profesionalnih bolesti općenito, profesionalne bolesti kože donose sa sobom velike zdravstvene, profesionalne i ekonomske gubitke. Iz tog su razloga provedena mnoga epidemiološka istraživanja kako bi se ustanovilo koje se profesije mogu kategorizirati kao rizične za pojavu određenih profesionalnih bolesti kože. Među njima, najčešće prijavljivanje profesionalne bolesti kože su alergijski i iritativni kontaktni dermatitis. Njihov uzrok leži u brojnim alergenima i iritansima kojima su radnici izloženi u svojem profesionalnom okruženju. Napredovanje tih bolesti i njihovo neadekvatno zbrinjavanje može ostaviti ozbiljne posljedice na profesionalan i osoban život i zdravlje radnika. Nadalje, kod radnika koji su u svojoj profesiji često izloženi sunčevom zračenju, postoji povećan rizik od razvoja profesionalnih tumora kože, kako nemelanomskih, tako i melanoma. Iz tog je razloga potrebno dodatno naglasiti bitnost prevencije konstantnog izlaganja UV-zračenju u profesionalnom okruženju. Nešto se rijeđe pojavljuju ostale profesionalne bolesti kože, poput profesionalne urtikarije, profesionalnih infekcija kože, reakcija fotoosjetljivosti i fototoksičnosti povezanih s radom i profesionalnih poremećaja pigmentacije. Popis profesionalnih bolesti kože iznimno je dugačak, međutim one su i dalje premalo prijavljivane, premalo zbrinjavane i premalo prevenirane bolesti unutar sustava medicine rada u Republici Hrvatskoj. Prevencija je ključni element u suzbijanju profesionalnih bolesti kože. Opisane su mnoge tehničke i organizacijske mjere i sustavi koji se mogu implementirati u svrhu smanjenja rizika, ali i osobno korištenje i pravilno rukovanje osobnom zaštitnom opremom od strane radnika. Naglašena je važnost obrazovanja i edukacije radnika o sigurnom radu te potreba za uspostavom suradnje između radnika, poslodavaca i stručnjaka za zaštitu na radu.Despite the progress of medicine, occupational skin diseases represent a serious medical and social problem. As one of the most common occupational diseases in general, occupational skin diseases bring with them great health, professional and economic losses. For this reason, many epidemiological studies have been conducted in order to establish which professions can be categorized as risky for the occurrence of certain occupational skin diseases. Among them, the most frequently reported occupational skin diseases are allergic and irritant contact dermatitis. Their cause lies in numerous allergens and irritants to which workers are exposed to in their professional environment. The progression of these diseases and their inadequate treatment can have serious consequences on the professional and personal life and health of the workers. Furthermore, workers who are often exposed to solar radiation in their profession have an increased risk of developing occupational skin tumors, both non-melanotic and melanoma. For this reason, it is necessary to additionally emphasize the importance of prevention when it comes to chronic exposure to UV radiation in a professional environment. There are also numerous other occupational skin diseases, such as occupational urticaria, occupational skin infections, work-related photosensitivity and phototoxicity reactions, and occupational pigmentation disorders. The list of occupational skin diseases is extremely long, but they are still under-reported, under-treated and under-prevented diseases within the occupational medicine system in the Republic of Croatia. Prevention is a key element in combating occupational skin diseases. Many technical and organizational measures and systems are described that can be implemented for the purpose of risk reduction, as well as personal use and proper handling of personal protective equipment by workers. The importance of education and training of workers on safe work and the need to establish cooperation between workers, employers and occupational safety experts is also emphasized