Assessing Pulmonary Function in Workers Exposed to Rice Threshing Processes

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Authors

  • Ipsita Rath
     Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering, Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), Bhubaneswar – 751003, Odisha ,IN
  • Jayanarayan Mishra
     Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering, Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), Bhubaneswar – 751003, Odisha ,IN
  • Kumudini Verma
     Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering, Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), Bhubaneswar – 751003, Odisha ,IN
  • Abhishek Pradhan
     Agricultural and Food Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur – 721302, West Bengal ,IN
  • Pralipta Pani
     Agricultural and Food Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur – 721302, West Bengal ,IN

Keywords:

FEV1/FVC, Obstructive Pattern Lung Diseases, PPE, Pulmonary Function Test, Spirometer

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.

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Published

2024-06-10

How to Cite

Rath, I., Mishra, J., Verma, K., Pradhan, A., & Pani, P. (2024). Assessing Pulmonary Function in Workers Exposed to Rice Threshing Processes. Journal of Ecophysiology and Occupational Health. Retrieved from https://informaticsjournals.com/index.php/JEOH/article/view/36482

Issue

Online First

Section

Research Article

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Ipsita Rath, Jayanarayan Mishra, Kumudini Verma, Abhishek Pradhan, Pralipta Pani

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Received 2024-02-06
Accepted 2024-04-24
Published 2024-06-10

 

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