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8291331 Prevalence of self-reported skin symptoms among batik workers in Indonesia

oemed · 2025-10-06 · canonical JSON source

7 visible annotations · policy: published · automated confidence ≥ 75.00%

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Objective Batik, recognised by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, is produced using hazardous chemicals, exposing workers to potential health and safety risks. This study investigates the prevalence of self-reported skin symptoms among Indonesian batik workers.Material and Methods A cross-sectional study of batik workers (home-based and workshop-based) and batik sellers was undertaken in Central Java, Indonesia. Data on demographics, working conditions, and self-reported skin symptoms were collected using a questionnaire adapted from the Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ)-Short. Binary logistic regression analysed skin symptoms among workers.Results This study recruited 276 batik workers (91 home-based, 90 workshop-based, and 95 sellers). Home-based batik workers were 100% female, workshop-based workers were 90% male and 10% female, and batik sellers were 10.5% male and 89.5% female. The mean age was 51 for home-based workers, 34 for workshop-based workers, and 43 for batik sellers. Among 46 participants with skin symptoms, 52.2% had at least one, 41.3% had two, and 6.5% had three. Hand eczema prevalence among home-based, workshop-based, and batik sellers was 19.8%, 20%, and 1.1%, respectively. Wrist/forearm eczema prevalence was 12.1%, 17.8%, and 0%, while atopic dermatitis-like symptoms were 1.1%, 4.4%, and 2.1%. After adjusting for confounders (age, BMI, smoking, education, and work experience), home-based batik workers were 11 times more likely to develop skin symptoms than sellers (95% CI: 2.6-47.4). The workshop-based batik workers were 6 times more likely to develop skin symptoms than batik sellers (95%CI: 1.4-26.8).Conclusion Skin symptoms are common among batik workers, particularly home-based ones, highlighting the need for intervention to minimise health risks.Funding This study is funded by LPDP RI (Indonesian Endowment Fund for Education) and Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology of Republic Indonesia.