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Prognosis of Occupational Contact Dermatitis

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Kanerva’s Occupational Dermatology

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Abstract

Factors that may affect the prognosis of occupational contact dermatitis include atopy, job change, the age of the patient, the nature of irritants and allergens, and the nature of the occupation.

Epidemiology studies in the 1970s and 1980s generally reported the persistence of dermatitis among patients who develop occupational contact dermatitis, but recent reports appear to indicate that the prognosis is better than previously thought.

Most studies indicated that there is no significant sex difference in the prognosis of occupational contact dermatitis.

Patients younger than 25 years fared clearly better than older groups.

Most reports indicate that irritant contact dermatitis tends to have a poorer prognosis than allergic contact dermatitis. Some occupational irritants – for example, cutting fluids – are more likely to lead to chronicity than others.

Workers who change their job tend to have better outcomes than those who do not change jobs.

A personal history of atopy appears to have poorer prognosis.

The causes of chronicity from occupational contact dermatitis are usually multifactorial.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Skin Centre, Singapore, Singapore

    Anthony Teik Jin Goon & Chee Leok Goh

Authors
  1. Anthony Teik Jin Goon
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  2. Chee Leok Goh
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chee Leok Goh .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Dermatology, Environmental Medicine and Health Theory, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany

    Swen Malte John

  2. National Allergy Research Centre, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Herlev-Gentofte University Hospital, Hellerup, Hellerup, Denmark

    Jeanne Duus Johansen

  3. Department of Dermatology and Allergology, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Thomas Rustemeyer

  4. Department of Dermatology, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany

    Peter Elsner

  5. Department of Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Howard I. Maibach

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Goon, A.T.J., Goh, C.L. (2020). Prognosis of Occupational Contact Dermatitis. In: John, S., Johansen, J., Rustemeyer, T., Elsner, P., Maibach, H. (eds) Kanerva’s Occupational Dermatology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68617-2_99

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68617-2_99

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-68615-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-68617-2

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