Acute Health Effects of Pesticide Exposure among Farmers Directly Involved with Spraying: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study from Kashmir Valley

Abstract

Background: Organophosphates (OP) are the extensively used pesticides that protect the agricultural produce from being damaged by the pests. These inhibit the acetylcholinesterase enzyme activity acutely which has a key role in the normal physiological functioning of the nervous system. There is an imminent possibility of deterioration of health in agricultural workers at the risk of OP exposure. The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical symptoms and chronic health effects of OP exposure among agricultural workers associated with spraying of pesticides in Kashmir, India. Methods: This cross-sectional study was undertaken among agricultural workers associated with pesticide spraying at least once a year. A questionnaire based survey and clinical examination was conducted among study participants. The specific questions regarding the occupational history, pattern of spraying, history and symptoms of OP pesticide exposure were noted. The use of personal protective equipment, number of years of OP exposure and the volume of pesticide used were also noted. Biochemical evaluation and serum acetylcholinesterase levels were measured by standard protocol. Results: A total of 63 subjects participated in the study with n= 61 (96.8%) males and n= 2 (3.2%) females. The study population had a mean age of 40.90 ± 12.66 years. Our results show considerable association between OP exposure and various neurological, psychological, mucoskeletal and respiratory symptoms, but it was not enough to provide evidence of biochemical derangement. The neurological symptoms included weakness (60.3%), dizziness (44.4%), headache (38.09%), fatigue (30.1%), and muscle pain (19.04%). The psychological symptoms included low mood (66.6%), anhedonia (46.03%), insomnia (23.8%), anxiety (19.04%), and nervousness (11.1%).Among respiratory symptoms cough (58.7%) was most commonly reported followed by cough with phlegm (41.2%) and breathlessness (12.6%). Only 9.5% of the study population reported the immediate symptom onset while 33.3% of participants reported delayed onset. Conclusion: The neurological complications were most commonly reported followed by ophthalmological symptoms. We concluded that OP exposure affects the nervous system followed by musculoskeletal, integumentary and respiratory systems with least impact on cardiovascular system. Key words: organophosphorus; acetylcholinesterase; neurological; farm workers; occupational exposure; pesticides.

Health Effects of Pesticides among Small Scale Farmers in an Urban Municipality of Nepal: A Descriptive Study

“…A community-based cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among professional smallscale farmers from May to October 2022 in all nine wards of Changunarayan Municipality, Bhaktapur, Nepal. The sample size was calculated using Cochran's formula (z 2 pq/e 2 ) with the prevalence of acute effect of pesticides from the previous study as 9.5%, 16 and 5% margin of error. The final sample size was 132.…”

“…After an extensive literature review and multiple discussions within the research team, the questionnaire was designed for the study. 16 The questionnaire was divided into three sections: first section with socio-demographic characteristics, second section with pesticide-related questions, and third section with behavior-related questions. Participants were given considerable time to record all their experiences during data collection.…”