Occupational Exposures and Obstructive Lung Disease: A Case-Control Study in Hairdressers

BACKGROUND: Hairdressers are exposed to various irritating chemicals during work.

OBJECTIVE: This study was designed as a case-control study to evaluate the risk of developing obstructive lung disease in relation to occupational exposures in hairdressers.

METHODS: We interviewed a cohort of 50 female hairdressers and 50 matched controls recruited from a random sample of the general population, using a validated questionnaire for occupational respiratory disease, to compare the prevalence of work-initiated and work-related respiratory symptoms in both groups. We also performed pulmonary function tests (PFTs) in all participants.

RESULTS: Almost half of the hairdressers reported work-initiated respiratory symptoms. Cough (33%) and breathlessness (29%) were the most common self-reported symptoms after chemical exposures. All respiratory symptoms (cough, breathless, wheezing, and phlegm) were significantly higher in the hairdressers than in the control group (P < .001). The hairdressers reported that bleaching powder and hair spray were the most irritant chemicals that provoke their respiratory symptoms. The impaired PFT values (forced vital capacity, FEV₁, maximum mid-expiratory flow, peak expiratory flow) in the hairdressers, compared to the matched controls, were in line with the questionnaire data.

CONCLUSIONS: Hairdressing work is associated with a high frequency of work-initiated respiratory symptoms and, to a lesser extent, with allergic symptoms, particularly after exposure to bleaching powder and hair spray. PFT values were significantly lower among the hairdressers, which might be a predictor for developing obstructive lung disease.