Mc. Kopferschmitkubler et al., ASTHMA RHINITIS AND DERMATITIS AFTER OCCU PATIONAL EXPOSURE TO CYANOACRYLATE GLUES, Revue des maladies respiratoires, 13(3), 1996, pp. 305-307
Cyanoacrylate glues are more and widely used in the industry because o
f easy handling and great sticking power. These very volatile and chem
ically reactive glues may not only cause contact eczema, but also rhin
itis and asthma. Nineteen cases of asthma have been reported to date.
We report two new cases of occupational asthma as well as one case of
urticaria, a clinical symptom not yet described, to our knowledge. In
the three cases, diagnosis was made based on a compatible medical hist
ory and positive realistic exposure tests. The mechanism is still unkn
own, due to the physical properties of cyanoacrylate glues; in fact, i
t is not possible to perform prick tests or specific IgE measurements.
Besides the usual preventive measures, maintaining a relative humidit
y greater than 55% seems to induce polymerization of free monomers of
alkyl cyanoacrylate, thereby reducing their volatility. Rhinitis and a
sthma due to cyanoacrylate glue may receive compensation as occupation
al diseases in France.