Abstract

Background: Routine exposure to poultry dust is an important source of indoor air pollution in poultry farms to which the poultry industry workers are exposed. Peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) is helpful in detecting respiratory morbidity at an initial stage of its development. Aims and Objectives: The aims and objectives were to study and compare PEFR in poultry industry workers of India.
Materials and Methods: PEFR was measured in 66 poultry industry workers and compared with demographically matched 66 healthy controls using an autospirometer. The data were analyzed using Student’s t-test.
Results: We found that the mean PEFR value was 5.86 ± 1.828 L/S in poultry industry workers and 8.36 ± 1.730 L/S in healthy controls. The difference was found to be highly statistically significant (P = 0.000). Conclusion: It was concluded that PEFR in poultry industry workers exposed to poultry dust is less than that of healthy controls.