Work Environment and Hand Dermatitis among Nurses in a Chinese Teaching Hospital

ABSTRACT

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the working environment on hand dermatitis (HD) prevalence among nurses in a Chinese teaching hospital. Methods: We utilised a previously validated, self-reporting survey which was translated into Chinese. Results: The prevalence of HD among nurses was 18.3%, although this rate varied between departments, ranging from 9.4% in gynaecology to 26.7% in intensive care (P for Trend=0.3167). Logistic regression indicated that wet work was the most important HD risk factor, with a 9-fold increase (OR 9.0, 95%CI 1.2−74.9, P=0.0342). Allergic disease was also related to HD, with a 4.6-fold increase noted (OR 4.6, 95%CI 1.4−15.0, P=0.0096). Conclusions: Overall, the prevalence of HD among Chinese hospital nurses appears to be less than that of their foreign counterparts. Nevertheless, the burden of this disease does seem to vary with respect to department of employment within the hospital.