Inflammatory markers in nasal lavage fluid from Industrial Arts teachers

Exposure to wood dust can cause allergic and nonallergic rhinitis. Inflammatory markers [cells, albumin, tryptase, and eosinophil cationic protein (ECP)] were examined in nasal lavage fluid (NAL) sampled from 24 Industrial Arts (IA) teachers exposed to wood dust and other irritants and from 24 control subjects. The IA teachers had more nasal complaints but they did not differ significantly from the controls regarding ECP concentration (median 4.1 and 4.7 micrograms/L, respectively), albumin concentration (median 30.7 and 20.7 g/L), and percentage of neutrophils (median 56 and 34) in NAL. Tryptase was not detected. No marked inflammation was thus found, but the albumin concentration was higher in subjects reporting nasal stuffiness. In the IA teachers, a relationship between the percentage of neutrophils and the number of classes during the working week was found (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient 0.53, p < 0.01) indicating a possibility of wood-dust-related inflammatory effects on the nasal mucosa.