The prevalence of anti-latex IgE antibodies among registered nurses

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have reported that the prevalence of latex allergy among volunteer populations of health care workers ranges from 2% to 25%. To date, no epidemiologic study has investigated the prevalence of latex allergy and its relationship to possible risk factors among nurses. METHODS...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of allergy and clinical immunology 1996-09, Vol.98 (3), p.535-544
Main Authors: Grzybowski, Mary, Ownby, Dennis R., Peyser, Patricia A., Johnson, Christine C., Schork, M.Anthony
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Allergic diseases
anti-latex IgE antibodies
Biological and medical sciences
Cross-Sectional Studies
epidemiology
Female
Gloves, Surgical - adverse effects
Humans
Hypersensitivity - epidemiology
Immunoglobulin E - blood
Immunopathology
Latex - immunology
Latex allergy
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Multivariate Analysis
nursing population
Nursing Staff, Hospital
Occupational Diseases - epidemiology
Other localizations
Prevalence
risk factor
Risk Factors
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:BACKGROUND: Recent studies have reported that the prevalence of latex allergy among volunteer populations of health care workers ranges from 2% to 25%. To date, no epidemiologic study has investigated the prevalence of latex allergy and its relationship to possible risk factors among nurses. METHODS: Registered nurses ( n = 741) in a large metropolitan hospital participated in a latex allergy prevalence study. Latex exposure data were obtained through self-administered questionnaires. Blood samples were classified as positive or negative for anti-latex IgE antibodies. Associations between potential risk factors for latex allergy and anti-latex antibodies were assessed. RESULTS: The participation rate was 90.6% among eligible nurses. Sixty-five samples were positive for a prevalence of 8.9% (95% confidence interval, 6.7 to 10.8). No differences in latex positivity among five nursing specialties were noted. Logistic regression indicated that after adjusting for age and sex, the following factors were significantly associated with latex seropositivity: nonwhite race (odds ratio [OR] = 4.2), reported histories of penicillin allergy (OR = 2.2), pruritic skin (OR = 2.2), conjunctivitis (OR = 3.0), localized urticaria (OR = 1.8), hay fever (OR = 2.1), avocado allergy (OR = 9.9), and ragweed allergy (OR = 3.4). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of latex sensitization appeared to be substantial (8.9%) among the nurses studied, and the prevalence did not vary by nursing specialty. The factors associated with latex positivity in the logistic regression model correctly classified 81.3% of the nurses with a sensitivity and specificity of 66.7% and 82.7%, respectively. (J A LLERGY C LIN I MMUNOL 1996;98:535-44.)
ISSN:0091-6749
1097-6825
DOI:10.1016/S0091-6749(96)70087-8