Krishna Rajesh Kilaru1, Pooja Munnangi2, Uma Devi V.3, Manogna Chowdary Kilaru4
BACKGROUND
Workers in a construction site may be exposed to various hazardous substances,
physical agents, poor hygienic living conditions and harsh environmental factors.
It is associated with plethora of health risks and increased risk of various
dermatological conditions is one such phenomenon which needs evaluation. We
did this study to assess the prevalence and pattern of skin diseases among migrant
construction workers.
METHODS
The current study was a community based cross-sectional study. Group of
construction workers working in a single cluster were selected by convenient
sampling. Data collection was done from March to September 2019. All the migrant
construction workers, who were available onsite were screened by a team of
qualified dermatologists and diagnosis of skin diseases was made using clinical
skills and lab facilities. Descriptive analysis was carried out by mean and standard
deviation (SD) for quantitative variables, and frequency and proportion for
categorical variables. Data was analysed using IBM SPSS statistical software
version 21.
RESULTS
A total of 833 construction workers were screened. There was a high male
preponderance, with male to female ratio of 7.42:1. The overall prevalence of any
dermatological morbidity was 36.2 %. Infective skin diseases contributed to 61.56
% of the dermatological morbidity. Among infective conditions, fungal infections
(65.5 %) were the most common infective dermatoses. Mite infestation (scabies)
was found in 46 (23.35 %) workers. The common bacterial infections observed
were furuncle and folliculitis in 7 (3.55 %) subjects each. Sycosis barbae was seen
in 2 (1.02 %) subjects. Viral infections like herpes and molluscum contagiosum
have contributed to the minor portion of the dermatological morbidity. One subject
was found to have Hansen’s disease. Allergic contact dermatitis (29.27 %),
photodermatitis (14.63 %), miliaria (12.20 %), hand eczema (9.76 %) and irritant
contact dermatitis (7.32 %) were the common non-infective skin conditions
affecting the study population.
CONCLUSIONS
There is high burden of dermatological morbidity among construction workers.
Majority of the skin conditions were infective in nature. Poor literacy levels,
overcrowded living conditions and poor personal hygienic practices were the
possible risk factors.
