Abstract

Background: Individuals engaged in poultry production are exposed to varying concentrations of airborne contaminants,including organic dust, gases, endotoxins, fungi, bacteria, and bacterial constituents. Long-term exposure to this,environment may put the poultry workers at risk for developing respiratory dysfunction. A periodic measurement of,pulmonary functions can be a guiding factor to detect pulmonary abnormalities in early stages. Objectives: The objectives,of this study were to record and compare pulmonary function parameters in poultry farm workers and healthy controls.,
Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in 132 subjects. Pulmonary function parameters were recorded in,66 healthy volunteers and 66 poultry workers using autospirometer (Helios 701: Chandigarh). Data were analyzed using,Student’s t-test.
Results: We found that all the pulmonary function parameters, namely, forced vital capacity (FVC),,forced expiratory volume , FEV1, and FEV3 were significantly lower (P = 0.000) in poultry workers as compared to,healthy controls, whereas FEV1/FVC% was normal indicating restrictive type of ventilatory changes in poultry workers.,There was a significant decrease (P = 0.001) in forced expiratory flow indicating early small airway obstruction and FEF,0.2–1.2 (P = 0.000) indicating large airway obstruction. A significant decrease in maximum voluntary ventilation (P =,0.000) can be due to obstructive and/or restrictive lung diseases. Conclusion: The results suggest that poultry workers,should be made aware of hazardous effects of poultry dust, and the use of appropriate personal protective equipment,during work should be implemented legally.