Epidemiological Investigation of a Cluster of Contact Dermatitis Cases in a Tertiary Healthcare Hospital in New Delhi

  • Shweta Charag Postgraduate Student, Department of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
  • Sunanda Gupta Senior Resident, Department of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
  • Charvi Chanana Senior Resident, Department of Dermatology, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
  • Sunita Yadav Consultant, Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
  • Jugal Kishore Director Professor and Head, Department of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
Keywords: Mask, Dermatitis, Cluster, Epidemiological Investigation, Healthcare Setting, Contact Dermatitis, N-95

Abstract

Introduction: Facemasks significantly reduce the chance of airborne transmission of COVID-19 when worn by patients. However, facemasks have been associated with facial dermatoses.
Methodology: A cluster of cases with skin lesions on the faces of patients was reported from the Gynaecology and Obstetrics ward of a tertiary care teaching hospital in Delhi in February 2023. This study reports the investigation conducted for the cluster of cases. The patients were interviewed with the help of a case investigation sheet, and relevant records were checked.
Results: The investigation revealed that the cases of skin lesions reported in the ward were a cluster of contact dermatitis and not of any infective origin. The cluster was limited to eight patients over three days, who had been distributed masks from the same box of storage. No other cases were reported from the ward thereafter. The lesions were healing with the treatment for contact dermatitis.
Conclusion: The present investigation revealed that the cases of skin lesions reported in the ward were a cluster of contact dermatitis and not of any infective origin. The cluster was limited to eight patients over three days, who had been distributed masks from the same box of storage.

How to cite this article:
Charag S, Gupta S, Chanana C, Yadav S, Kishore J. Epidemiological Investigation of a Cluster of Contact Dermatitis Cases in a Tertiary Healthcare Hospital in New Delhi. Epidem Int. 2023;8(3):4-8.

DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.24321/2455.7048.202310

References

Li Y, Liang M, Gao L, Ahmed MA, Uy JP, Cheng C, Zhou Q, Sun C. Face masks to prevent transmission of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Infect Control. 2021 Jul;49(7):900-6. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Jefferson T, Dooley L, Ferroni E, Al-Ansary LA, van Driel ML, Bawazeer GA, Jones MA, Hoffmann TC, Clark J, Beller EM, Glasziou PP, Conly JM. Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2023 Jan 30;1(1):CD006207. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Published
2023-08-30
Issue
Vol. 8 No. 3 (2023): Epidemiology International
Section
Research Article

Copyright (c) 2023 Shweta Charag, Sunanda Gupta, Charvi Chanana, Sunita Yadav, Jugal Kishore

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.