Occupational Asthma

By Morag Robertson

With the recent launch of ‘Asthma at Work – Your Charter’, Morag Robertson, a member of MWR Solicitors’ occupational diseases department, looks at the subject in more detail.

 

What is industrial asthma?

Occupational Asthma is a disease characterised by variable air flow limitation or airway hyper-responsiveness due to causes and conditions attributable to a particular occupational environment. It is not due to stimuli encountered outside the workplace.

Two types can be distinguished. The first type is where symptoms such as chest tightness, wheezing, shortness of breath and/or a dry cough appear after a latent period of exposure. The second category is where asthma develops without a period of latency. This type is often associated with exposure to high concentrations of irritants. The symptoms may differ and it is referred to as Active Airways Dysfunction Syndrome (RADS).

Irritants can also cause rhinitis which means inflammation of the nose which can cause a blocked, runny or itchy nose.

 

Is it common within baking and food working environments?

The 2003-04 Self-reported Work-related Illness Survey estimated that there were 183,000 people with breathing or lung problems which they believe to be work-related.

Isocyanates were the most commonly reported agent with flour and grain being the second. Bakers and flour confectioners were among the occupations with the highest incidence rate of occupational asthma.

 

What can be done to protect workers?

Airborne exposure to respiratory sensitizers may carry a risk of asthma. As this is potentially a life-threatening condition, employers have a duty to ensure that all reasonably practicable measures are taken to implement control through ventilation and containment. The most effective means of control is to prevent exposure altogether.

Naturally occurring biological agents which may cause sensitization range from locusts used in laboratories to the processing of foods such as salmon, crabs, prawns or shrimps.

Personal protection plays an important role in situations where control at source is clearly impracticable. There are various types of facial respirators and masks available. However at times the use of respirators or powered filtering facial respirators may be impractical.

Some surveys have shown that factors such as smoking increase the likelihood of sensitization and thus the risk of contracting asthma.

Individual cases need to be carefully investigated. This can include monitoring of peak flow at work and at home. A peak flow test monitors the amount of gas exchanged in the lungs.

 

Can I seek compensation for an industrial related disease?

Workers may be unaware of the possible relationship between their symptoms and their work. That is one reason why ‘The Charter’ is so important as it raises awareness. Even if workers suspect a link they are often reluctant to report their concerns to a doctor, fearing adverse consequences from their employer. Employers often have inadequate surveillance procedures to measure the frequency of occupational asthma. Even when cases are brought to their attention they do not always fulfil their legal obligation of reporting.

Employees suffering an occupational illness are often retired or dismissed on “medical” grounds. Two specific questions need to be answered with regard to such a decision taken on grounds of occupational asthma.

  • Is the worker so unwell that he cannot perform his job and there is no other job he can do?
  • Are all the possible jobs for that worker so unsafe because of the exposure to the sensitizer or irritant, that the worker could not undertake any such jobs without a significant risk to his/her health and safety?

 

Employers have a statutory duty to report clinically diagnosed cases of occupational asthma when the cases fulfil any of the definitions in the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1985.

One of the problems with compensation is that it is difficult at times to prove the causal link between the condition and the sensitizer or irritant. Many different substances can cause asthma and it is often down to the doctor and his medical report to determine whether or not  we have the evidence to bring a successful claim.

Are there any government benefits I can claim?

Yes, Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit. Occupational asthma is also a prescribed industrial disease. The terms of the prescription have been widened to include all causative agents, provided the level of proof is adequate.

What about the future?

The number of recognised occupational respiratory sensitizers is likely to increase. Many probably already exist but have not yet been recognised. Others are yet to be discovered or manufactured. Our capacity to predict hazards improves all the time. Better control methods and protective measures should become available. When early detection and prevention fail then workers must hope that rehabilitation methods improve and that the road to compensation becomes easier.