Occupational skin disease in workers from the electronics industry in Singapore

Of 149 workers from the electronics industry with occupational dermatoses seen at the Joint Occupational Dermatoses Clinic at the National Skin Centre, Singapore, 51.0% (76) were diagnosed to have irritant contact dermatitis, 40.9% (61) had allergic contact dermatitis, and 8.1% (12) had noncontact dermatitis. More than half of the patients were younger than 30 years of age. Common irritants were soldering flux, oils and coolants, solvents, and acids/alkalis. The most common allergens were nickel and resins, followed by rubber chemicals and the constituents of flux. Of the noncontact dermatitis, 8 were caused by occupationally relevant exacerbation of endogenous eczema, whereas there was one case each of miliaria, frictional dermatitis, and fatal toxic epidermal necrolysis caused by trichloroethylene allergy.