dermatological complaints of contact dermatitis during the covid-19 pandemic (2019-2021) among healthcare workers of an isfahan university-affiliated hospital, iran

Background and aims: using anti-septic and personal protective equipment (ppe) may cause contact dermatitis (cd) in hospital staff. during covid-19, the team used ppe and hand washing more frequently. this study investigated the prevalence of cd and its related factors among hospital staff during the covid-19 pandemic. methods: overall, 360 participants were selected by proportion sampling from an isfahan universityaffiliated hospital (alzahra hospital) between 2019 and 2021. a checklist about demographic and workplace variables, skin signs, and symptoms was distributed to samples. we assessed associations between the frequencies of the worksite and cleaning product exposures and a symptom-based definition of cd among current hospital workers. results: the prevalence of hand dermatitis in participants and their mean age were 84% and 35.7 ± 8.6 years, respectively. in addition, the most reported symptoms were itching (147, 40%) and redness of the hand (141, 39%). using gloves, especially latex and vinyl gloves, had a significant association with the incidence of cd (p < 0.03). the frequency and time of hand washing had no significant relationship with dermatitis (p > 0.05). conclusion: setting up preventive actions and managing this condition are better to be influential among the policies of hospital managers given the high prevalence of cd among hospital workers.