Organophosphate poisoning has been associated with chronic neurobehavioral dysfunction, but no epidemiologic data exist with regard to long-term consequences from carbamate poisoning. This cross-sectional study evaluated the neurobehavioral performances of 81 banana workers who, on average 27 months earlier, had received medical attention not requiring hospitalization for mild occupational poisoning by either an organophosphate or a carbamate pesticide. These performances were compared with those of 130 banana workers who had never sought medical attention for pesticide poisoning. Poisoned subjects did less well than controls on tests measuring psychomotor and visuomotor skills, language function, and affect, the differences being significant for coding skills on the Digit-Symbol test and two tests of neuropsychiatric symptoms. These deficits, in particular a marked increase of neuropsychiatric symptoms, occurred among the organophosphate-poisoned subjects, but small deficits in performance were also seen in the carbamate-poisoned subjects. The performances of the previously poisoned subjects who had had contact with cholinesterase inhibitors within three months before testing were particularly poor. These findings in workers with mild poisoning are consistent with previous findings of persistent damage to the central nervous system from organophosphate poisoning. The possibility of persistent neurobehavioral effects associated with poisonings by nmethyl carbamate insecticides cannot be excluded. Workers with histories of poisoning may be more susceptible to neurobehavioral effects with subsequent exposures.

These results suggest that tinnitus is common in Korea and may be associated with some avoidable risk factors.

Objectives-To explore whether symptoms resulted from pesticide spray drift on residentially exposed populations in rural Nicaragua. Methods-100 residents, each 10 years of age or older, were randomly selected from a Nicaraguan community surrounded by actively sprayed cotton fields (the exposed community) and from a socioeconomically similar community far from agricultural spraying (the control community). Subjects working with pesticides were excluded, and the study was conducted at the end of the 1990 cotton spraying season (August-December). Demographic information, exposure questions, and prevalence of 11 acute symptoms and 17 chronic symptoms were gathered from a structured interview.Finger stick erythrocyte cholinesterase (AChE) was measured with a portable calorimeter. Acute symptoms were grouped according to their previously known associations with cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitors into four ordinal categories (asymptomatic, non-specific, possible, probable). Results-Residents from the exposed community were significantly more likely to report recently sighting a spray plane near their community, exposure to pesticide from drift, crossing recently sprayed fields, eating home grown food, and feeling ill after drift exposure. The mean AChE value was significantly lower for residents of the exposed community (4.9 v 5-3 IUMdi). The proportion of subjects complaining of one or more chronic or acute symptoms was significantly higher for the exposed community (87%) than for the controls (53%/6). Odds ratios for residents in the exposed community, by symptom categories, were non-specific 1*6 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0-8 to 3-2), possible 4-1 (95% CI 1-7 to 10.2), and probable 9-93 (95% CI 2*9 to 34.4). Conclusion-These findings indicate a strong association between exposure to aerial pesticides and symptoms. This study should be replicated with more quantitative exposure measures, for if confirmed, the results have relevance for millions in rural communities worldwide. (Occup Environ Med 1996;53:726-729)

These findings support a possible protective effect of coffee on the risk of depression.