Occupational anaphylaxis – an EAACI task force consensus statement |
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| Authors: | A. Siracusa I. Folletti R. Gerth van Wijk M. F. Jeebhay G. Moscato S. Quirce M. Raulf F. Ruëff J. Walusiak‐Skorupa P. Whitaker S. M. Tarlo |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Formerly professor of Occupational Medicine, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy;2. Occupational Medicine, Terni Hospital, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy;3. Section of Allergology, Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands;4. Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health Research, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa;5. Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine of the University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy;6. Department of Allergy, Hospital La Paz Institute for Health Research (IdiPAZ) and CIBER of Respiratory Diseases CIBERES, Madrid, Spain;7. Institute of Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany;8. Department of Dermatology and Allergology, Ludwig‐Maximilian University, Munich, Germany;9. Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz, Poland;10. Department of Respiratory Medicine, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds, UK;11. Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada |
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| Abstract: | Anaphylaxis is a systemic allergic reaction, potentially life‐threatening that can be due to nonoccupational or, less commonly, to occupational triggers. Occupational anaphylaxis (OcAn) could be defined as anaphylaxis arising out of triggers and conditions attributable to a particular work environment. Hymenoptera stings and natural rubber latex are the commonest triggers of OcAn. Other triggers include food, medications, insect/mammal/snake bites, and chemicals. The underlying mechanisms of anaphylactic reactions due to occupational exposure are usually IgE‐mediated and less frequently non‐IgE‐mediated allergy or nonallergic. Some aspects of work‐related allergen exposure, such as route and frequency of exposure, type of allergens, and cofactors may explain the variability of symptoms in contrast to the nonoccupational setting. When assessing OcAn, both confirmation of the diagnosis of anaphylactic reaction and identification of the trigger are required. Prevention of further episodes is important and is based on removal from further exposure. Workers with a history of OcAn should immediately be provided with a written emergency management plan and an adrenaline auto‐injector and educated to its use. Immunotherapy is recommended only for OcAn due to Hymenoptera stings. |
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| Keywords: | anaphylaxis drug allergy latex occupational allergies venom and insect allergy |
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