Occupational skin disease in Victoria, Australia

Objectives To describe the characteristics of patients with occupational skin disease (OSD) in a tertiary referral clinic in Victoria, Australia. Methods A retrospective review was conducted of records from patients seen at the Occupational Dermatology Clinic in Melbourne, Australia between 1 January 1993 and 31 December 2010. Results Of the 2894 people assessed in the clinic during the 18‐year period, 44% were women and 56% were men. In all, 2177 (75%) were diagnosed with occupational skin disease (OSD). Of the patients with a work‐related skin condition, 45% (n = 979) were considered to be atopic. The most common diagnosis in those with OSD was irritant contact dermatitis (ICD) (44%), followed by allergic contact dermatitis (33%) and endogenous eczema (11%). Women were significantly more likely to have soaps and detergents (P