Types of Work Related Asthma

There are 3 types of work-related asthma:

• Work-Aggravated:  when a person already has asthma but something at work makes the breathing symptoms worse.
• New-Onset Asthma from a High Level Exposure to a Substance at Work:  when a person never had asthma before and was exposed to a spill or big leak of a chemical at work, and then developed asthma after that event.
• New-Onset Asthma from Working with a Substance Known to Cause Asthma:  when a person may have worked with a substance at work, even for many years with no asthma symptoms and then develops asthma, months or years later.

For greater detail on the diagnosis and identification of the three types of work-related asthma, read the following scientific articles:

• Tarlo SM et al. Diagnosis and Management of Work-Related Asthma. ACCP Consensus Statement. Chest 2008; 134:1S-41S.
• Henneberger PK et al. Work-Exacerbated Asthma. Am J Resp Crit Care Med 2011; 184:368-378.

Substances at work that can cause asthma

There are more than 400 substances that have been reported in the medical literature that have been shown to cause work-related asthma. The list continues to grow. The main categories of substances that can cause asthma in the workplace include:

• ANIMALS (dander, fur, etc.)
• PLANTS and PLANT material
• CHEMICALS

The following is a short list of examples of the types of jobs, industries, and the types of substances that can cause asthma. For an Exposure Code online look-up option for asthma-causing agents, refer to this web site: www.aoecdata.org/ExpCodeLookup.aspx.