ABSTRACT
Occupational illnesses have always been viewed as being under-counted. They have been estimated at somewhere between 50,000 and 90,000 cases annually. Occupational illnesses have some unique features that can be attributed to their under-reporting, including the following:
• They are more dif€cult to recognize or diagnose. • There is often a latency period between exposure and the occurrence of
symptoms. • There is not always a clear cause and effect relationship. • Root or basic causes are not clearly apparent. • It is dif€cult to determine a sequence of events.
