Coble Joseph, Hoppin Jane A, Engel Lawrence, Elci Omur Cinar, Dosemeci Mustafa, Lynch Charles F, Alavanja Michael
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Occupational Epidemiology Branch, 6120 Executive Boulevard, EPS8110, Rockville, Maryland 20892-7240, USA.
J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol. 2002 Nov;12(6):418-26. doi: 10.1038/sj.jea.7500248.
Exposures to multiple chemical, physical, and biological agents in agricultural work environments can result in confounding that may obscure or distort risks observed in epidemiologic studies. The Agricultural Health Study (AHS) is a large epidemiology study being conducted to investigate health risks among pesticide applicators and their families. During enrollment in the AHS, questionnaires were administered to over 52,000 licensed pesticide applicators from North Carolina and Iowa, who were mostly farmers. Questions about the frequency of various farming tasks were used to estimate the prevalence of exposure to solvents (25%), metals (68%), grain dusts (65%), diesel exhaust fumes (93%), and other hazards, including exposure to pesticides. Most of the farmers in the AHS reported performing routine maintenance tasks at least once a month, such as painting (63%), welding (64%), and repair of pesticide equipment (58%). The majority of farmers (74% in North Carolina; 59% in Iowa) reported holding nonfarm jobs, of which the most frequent were construction and transportation. The majority of the farmers enrolled in the AHS (55%) also reported that they mixed or applied pesticides on 10 or more days per year. The associations between the use of pesticides and the frequency with which the farmers in the AHS reported performing various types of specific farming activities were assessed to evaluate potential confounding. Confounding risk ratios calculated for these activities suggest that the magnitude of bias due to confounding is likely to be minimal.
农业工作环境中接触多种化学、物理和生物制剂可能会导致混杂因素，从而模糊或扭曲流行病学研究中观察到的风险。农业健康研究（AHS）是一项正在进行的大型流行病学研究，旨在调查农药施用者及其家人的健康风险。在AHS的登记过程中，对来自北卡罗来纳州和爱荷华州的52000多名持牌农药施用者（大多数是农民）进行了问卷调查。有关各种农事任务频率的问题被用来估计接触溶剂（25%）、金属（68%）、谷物粉尘（65%）、柴油废气（93%）以及其他危害（包括接触农药）的患病率。AHS中的大多数农民报告称每月至少进行一次日常维护任务，如喷漆（63%）、焊接（64%）和农药设备维修（58%）。大多数农民（北卡罗来纳州为74%；爱荷华州为59%）报告有非农业工作，其中最常见的是建筑和运输业。参与AHS的大多数农民（55%）还报告称，他们每年混合或施用农药的天数在10天或以上。评估了农药使用与AHS中农民报告进行各种特定农事活动的频率之间的关联，以评估潜在的混杂因素。为这些活动计算的混杂风险比表明，由于混杂因素导致的偏差幅度可能很小。
