Assessing Pulmonary Function in Workers Exposed to Rice Threshing Processes

Abstract

The economic significance of rice cultivation in India is vast, spanning diverse agro-climatic zones. Threshing, a crucial aspect of rice farming traditionally involves manual or motor-operated methods. Despite the prevalent adoption of tractoroperated axial flow threshers, the process remains inherently dusty, predominantly comprising organic dust particles, posing a substantial health risk to workers. This study aims to evaluate and compare the lung functions of individuals exposed to rice dust with an unexposed control group, while investigating the correlation between the duration of exposure in threshing operations and observed respiratory parameters. Thirty agricultural workers aged 30-45, with varying threshing experience (3, 5, and 7 years), were selected alongside thirty non-agricultural workers for Pulmonary Function Tests (PFT), including Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) and Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1). Spirometry, a vital diagnostic tool for occupational respiratory diseases was utilised to measure dynamic lung functions. The findings revealed relatively constant FVC values with increasing years of experience, while both FEV1 and FEV1/FVC values demonstrated a decline with prolonged exposure, indicating an escalated susceptibility to obstructive lung diseases such as asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and bronchiectasis among workers in this occupation.