Effects of rice husk dust on the pulmonary function measurements of rice polishing workers

ABSTRACT

Dakahlia Governorate is considered one of the important areas for cultivation and polishing of rice. Several studies showed that dust acts as an airway irritant. Therefore the present work was carried out to study some pulmonary function measurements of rise polishing workers and to investigate the effects of parasitic upon the pulmonary function of the exposed workers. The study population comprised of 109 workers exposed to rise husk dust and 30 individuals as controls. All subjects were submitted to a designed questionnaire, pulmonary function tests, urine and stool analysis. A significant reduction in the mean values of the pulmonary function measurements of the exposed workers comared to the controls. Also there was a significant decline in the pulmonary function indices of the exposed workers with parasitic infestation compared to those exposed and free from parasites. Bilharzial infestation has a more significant reductive effect on the pulmonary function than that of Entamaeba histolytica. In exposed workers, smoking significantly reduced the mean values of all lung functions of smokers parasitic infections compared to those with of the non-smokers with parasitic infections. This implies the possibility of a relation between smoking, parasitic infestation and exposure to rice husk dust, on one hand and the palmonary indices measured on the others