Affiliation:
1. Institute for Occupational Health of Republic of Macedonia, WHO Collaborating Center Skopje, Republic of Macedonia1
Abstract
Environmental and Occupational Health Risks Among Agricultural Workers Living in a Rural Community Near Petroleum Refinery and Motorway in Skopje RegionTo assess health risks in agricultural workers associated with environmental exposure to pollutants released from a petroleum refinery and from traffic, we performed a cross-sectional study that included 119 randomly selected subjects divided in two groups. Group 1 included 60 agricultural workers living in a rural community near the petroleum refinery and a motorway overpass, whereas Group 2 consisted of 59 agricultural workers performing similar activities and living in a rural community with no exposure to industrial and traffic pollutants. Risk assessment included a questionnaire, blood pressure measurement, spirometry, laboratory tests, and toxicological analysis. The groups showed a similar prevalence of health problems, with exception of muscle pain in the extremities, headache, and fatigue, which were significantly more common in Group 1. Diastolic blood pressure was higher in Group 1, but not significantly (p=0.057). The same is true for blood carbon monoxide. Significantly higher in Group 1 were blood haemoglobin (p=0.001) and blood lead (p<0.001). Serum cholinesterase activity was similar in both groups. Our findings indicate the need of regular medical exams, ambient monitoring and environmental impact assessment in agricultural population in order to detect individuals at risk and to institute adequate preventive measures.
Subject
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health,Toxicology
Reference32 articles.
1. Census of Agriculture 2007. State Statistical Office of R. Macedonia [displayed 8 November 2010]. Available at: http://www.stat.gov.mk/english/PopisNaZemjodelstvoto2007/opsto_eng.asp
2. International Labour Organization (ILO). The ILO Programme on Occupational Safety and Health in Agriculture [displayed 8 November 2010]. Available at http://www.ilo.org/safework/areasofwork/lang-en/WCMS_117367/index.htm
3. Ministry of Health of R. Macedonia. Program for analysis and prevention of occupational risks in rural population in R. Macedonia. Official Gazette of R. Macedonia 03/2009.
4. Lodi Declaration on Healthy Villages: adopted by the 16th International Congress of Agricultural Medicine and Rural Health, Lodi, Italy, 18-21 June 2006;C. Colosio;Med Lav,2006
5. US Department of Energy, Office of Industrial Technologies. Energy and Environmental Profile of the US Petroleum Refining Industry 1998 [displayed 8 November 2010]. Available at http://www.inti.gov.ar/cadenasdevalor/energia.pdf
Cited by
6 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献