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 1 Floodwater exposure and the related health symptoms among firefighters in New Orleans, Louisiana 2005
Authors Tak-S; Bernard-BP; Driscoll-RJ; Dowell-CH 
Source Am J Ind Med 50(5):377-382  
Link http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajim.20459 
NIOSHTIC No. 20031855 
AbstractBackground: Concerns over increased reports of physical health symptoms thought to be related to floodwater exposure among New Orleans firefighters prompted a health hazard evaluation of firefighters following Hurricane Katrina. Methods: A questionnaire assessing health symptoms possibly related to the response to Hurricane Katrina was administered to all New Orleans Fire Department (NOFD) personnel within 3 months of the disaster. Descriptive statistics were compiled and prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated for covariates using generalized linear models with Log link and Poisson distribution. Results: Of the 525 firefighters who completed the questionnaire (77% participation), 201 (38%) reported one or more new-onset respiratory symptoms, such as sinus congestion (145 [28%]), throat irritation (92 [17%]), and cough (124 [24%]). Skin rash was reported by 258 (49%) of respondents, 414 (79%) reported skin contact with floodwater, and 165 (32%) reported contact with floodwater on multiple days. In multivariate analyses adjusting for age, gender, and smoking, firefighters who had floodwater contact with skin and either nose/mouth or eyes (224, 44%) had an increased rate of new-onset upper respiratory symptoms (PR = 1.9; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1, 3.1), and skin rash (PR = 2.1; 95% CI, 1.4, 3.2) compared to those not exposed to the floodwater. Conclusions: Response workers involved with floodwater should minimize direct skin and mucosal contact with floodwater if possible through the use of appropriate personal protective equipment, such as goggles, safety glasses with side shields, or full-face shields. 
KeywordsQuestionnaires; Statistical-analysis; Epidemiology; Fire-fighters; Emergency-responders; Respiratory-protective-equipment; Respiratory-system-disorders; Pulmonary-system-disorders; Skin-exposure; Protective-clothing; Protective-equipment; Skin-protection; Eye-protective-equipment; Eye-protection; Eye-shields; Dermatitis 
ContactSangWoo Tak, Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Officer, Hazard Evaluations and Technical Assistance Branch, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 4676 Columbia Parkway, R-10, Cincinnati, OH 45226 
CODENAJIMD8 
Publication Date20070501 
Document TypeJournal Article 
Email AddressSTak@cdc.gov 
Fiscal Year2007 
NTIS Accession No. 
NTIS Price 
Issue of Publication
ISSN0271-3586 
NIOSH DivisionDSHEFS 
Source NameAmerican Journal of Industrial Medicine 
StateOH; LA 
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