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http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pulmonary/Asthma/tb/5359
"UTRECHT, The Netherlands, March 30 -- Lifeguards, swimming instructors, and other pool rats are likely to wind up with respiratory symptoms, according to researchers here.
Action Points
* Explain to interested patients that the chlorine used to disinfect pools reacts with organic substances to form compounds that cause respiratory irritation.
* Note that this study showed pool workers who spent a great deal of time poolside had a significantly greater risk of a range of respiratory symptoms than other people.
* Explain that this finding probably has little application to casual swimmers, since they spend a relatively short amount of time in the pool, rather than spending a working day poolside.
The culprit is probably chlorine in the pool water, which reacts with organic substances, such as sweat or saliva, to form chloramines -- substances that are thought to irritate the respiratory tract, found José Jacobs, Ph.D., of the University of Utrecht.
The most volatile of the chloramines is trichloramine, which easily migrates from the water to the air above and has been associated with upper respiratory symptoms, Dr. Jacobs and colleagues reported in the April issue of the European Respiratory Journal.
Dr. Jacobs noted that the risk was probably limited to people who spend a lot of time poolside, breathing the air, rather than a short time in the pool swimming.
"Our results concern poolside staff and cannot a priori be extrapolated to visitors," Dr. Jacobs said..... "
"UTRECHT, The Netherlands, March 30 -- Lifeguards, swimming instructors, and other pool rats are likely to wind up with respiratory symptoms, according to researchers here.
Action Points
* Explain to interested patients that the chlorine used to disinfect pools reacts with organic substances to form compounds that cause respiratory irritation.
* Note that this study showed pool workers who spent a great deal of time poolside had a significantly greater risk of a range of respiratory symptoms than other people.
* Explain that this finding probably has little application to casual swimmers, since they spend a relatively short amount of time in the pool, rather than spending a working day poolside.
The culprit is probably chlorine in the pool water, which reacts with organic substances, such as sweat or saliva, to form chloramines -- substances that are thought to irritate the respiratory tract, found José Jacobs, Ph.D., of the University of Utrecht.
The most volatile of the chloramines is trichloramine, which easily migrates from the water to the air above and has been associated with upper respiratory symptoms, Dr. Jacobs and colleagues reported in the April issue of the European Respiratory Journal.
Dr. Jacobs noted that the risk was probably limited to people who spend a lot of time poolside, breathing the air, rather than a short time in the pool swimming.
"Our results concern poolside staff and cannot a priori be extrapolated to visitors," Dr. Jacobs said..... "
