Stručni rad
https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2018-69-3155
Peak expiratory flow monitoring in the diagnosis of occupational asthma
Dina Skroza
; Dom zdravlja Čakovec, Čakovec, Hrvatska
Jelena Macan
orcid.org/0000-0001-6269-5475
; Institut za medicinska istraživanja i medicinu rada, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Sažetak
According to the ten-year (2008-2017) data of the national Register of Occupational Diseases (Croatian Institute for Health Protection and Safety at Work), of the 2,234 registered cases of occupational diseases only 20 were of occupational asthma. Such underreporting points to poor diagnosing and recognition of this disorder in our working population. The aim of this paper was therefore to address this issue by introducing the standard method for peak expiratory flow (PEF) monitoring as a helpful tool in diagnosing occupational asthma. PEF monitoring is a relatively simple, inexpensive, noninvasive, and robust method for determining the function of the respiratory system in real working conditions and environment. Current guidelines recommend PEF monitoring as an initial diagnostic tool for cases of suspected occupational asthma. A positive test points to associations between changes in the lung function and work exposure and makes an important part in the procedure confirming suspect occupational asthma. However, this test cannot determine the cause of asthma because it does not distinguish occupational asthma from work-aggravated asthma, interpretation of results is not standardised, and its measurements are carried out by workers themselves, which may allow intentional and unintentional errors in measurements. This paper also brings a practical guide for occupational and sport medicine physicians to use this diagnostic method in their practices. Special focus is given to the PEF measurement protocol and the presentation and interpretation of its findings.
Ključne riječi
bronchoprovocation testing; occupational allergens; PEF; respiratory irritants; work-aggravated asthma
Hrčak ID:
213663
URI
Datum izdavanja:
20.12.2018.
Posjeta: 2.534 *