Clinical manifestations of allergy in teachers in the Agadir region using chalk

<bold>Introduction:</bold> Chalk is a sedimentary rock containing almost exclusively calcium carbonate. It is used in the form of sticks for writing on blackboards in school classrooms. The aim of our survey is to describe and identify allergic clinical manifestations linked to chalk dust in teachers. <bold>Material and methods:</bold> This is a descriptive, cross-sectional survey of teachers working in the Agadir region. Data was collected using a web questionnaire on the Google Forms platform, sent out to their professional networks. Data analysis was performed using Jamovi software. <bold>Results:</bold> The sex ratio of teachers was 0.47. The average age was 36.03 years. Average years of practice were 11.18 years. Asthmatic teachers accounted for 9.5%, and exposure to chalk dust was responsible for an asthma attack in 12.5% at least once. Among respondents, 63.2% of teachers showed clinical signs of allergy after integration into teaching. Allergic rhinitis was present in 42.5%, dermatitis in 34.4%, and conjunctivitis in 21.6%. The time to onset of allergic clinical manifestations after exposure to chalk dust was a few minutes for 56.4% and immediately for 32.7% of respondents. Teachers who wanted to replace chalk with another teaching method accounted for 85%. <bold>Conclusion:</bold> Chalk is widely used in teaching in Morocco, and according to our survey, its dust is responsible for several allergic clinical manifestations among teachers. Further studies involving medical examination and skin testing are needed to confirm our results.