Health Risk Assessment on Pesticide Exposure among Planting Farmers in Sakon Nakhon Province

Abstract

This cross-sectional analytic study aimed to assess health risk on exposure to pesticides of cultivated farmers. Risk matrix based on exposure opportunities to pesticides and the severity of self-report adverse symptoms was applied to this study. Data were collected by an interviewed questionnaire of protective behavior and adverse symptoms among registered agriculturists used pesticides for planting in Sakon Nakhon Province. There were registered farmers of 261 cases of illness related to pesticide toxicity from 43 file health database and 261 non-cases of illness from health database. The results showed that, among 522 planting farmers, most of them were males (53.64%), the average age was 51.88 years (SD = 8.84). Opportunities for exposure to pesticides was a medium level, cases had 6.90% and non-cases had 5.36%. The severity of adverse symptoms of the moderate level was indicated in 44.06% of cases and 11.88% of non-cases. Mild symptoms of the highest frequency were nasal irritation, sore/dry throat, and difficulty breathing had been reported in cases and non-cases. The high health risk on exposure to pesticides was 3 times higher among cases (42.91%) compared to non-cases (12.26%). The significantly positive linearity of correlation of the health risk levels and cholinesterase screening results was likely low (r=0.339). However, in order to control the risk of pesticide exposures causing consequence illness among cultivated farmers, this health risk matrix could be applied to the health surveillance program in parallel with using the blood screening test.