Skin health and safety at work in Croatian hairdressing apprentices

Abstract

The results indicate the need for the continuation of efforts to establish effective primary preventive programmes for OSDs at national and EU levels.

Factors related to skin health in hairdressing apprentices from two Croatian regions

“…The results of a previous study on Croatian hairdressing apprentices at the end of their training confirmed high exposure to skin hazards during vocational education, as has also been found in other studies, particularly in terms of hair washing and dyeing, and rinsing dye from the hair. Poor skin protection habits of Croatian hairdressing apprentices, and probably poor supervision of their vocational teachers and tutors regarding prevention of the irritant effects of wet work on skin, was suspected.…”

“…Apprentices from both regions were examined: those from Zagreb from 21 April to 6 May 2015, and those from Dalmatia from 2 to 4 May 2016. The study protocol and recruitment process were the same as described previously . Briefly, the participants were invited to participate in the study via a presentation and flyers at school.…”

“…Detailed assessment protocols have been described elsewhere . Briefly, a history of ever having work‐related skin symptoms on the hands, wrists and forearms was assessed with the Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ‐2002), with added questions on hand skin xerosis .…”

“…Transepidermal water loss (TEWL) was measured on the forearm and on the dorsum of the hand (Tewameter TM 300; Courage & Khazaka Electronic, Cologne, Germany) with the standard procedure suggested by the manufacturer. To assess HRQoL, we used a shortened version of the Duke Health Profile (DHP), as described in our previous study . The participants rated each of the 12 questions from the DHP on a three‐point rating scale.…”

“…Poor skin protection habits of Croatian hairdressing apprentices, and probably poor supervision of their vocational teachers and tutors regarding prevention of the irritant effects of wet work on skin, was suspected. In the study, 91% of apprentices reported wearing gloves while dyeing hair, 45% while rinsing hair dyes, and only 4% while washing hair . Such poor protection from skin irritants resulted in skin symptoms on the hands and wrists in 40% of apprentices.…”