The effect of tobacco consumption on blood cholinesterase levels among workers exposed to organophosphorus pesticides.

This is a cross-sectional study of workers in the pesticide industry, engaged in the formulation and packaging of organophosphorus compounds. A detailed history was taken of all study participants. Investigations carried out were the measurement of haemoglobin levels and estimation of whole blood cholinesterase levels. The prevalence of tobacco consumption in the industry is 76.09%. The mean age of employees was 42.8 years and the mean duration of service was 16.6 years. The study concludes that tobacco consumption increases the risk of toxicity due to organophosphorus pesticides, as indicated by a decrease in the blood cholinesterase levels. In this study, the age of employees and duration of service in the pesticide industry played no role in increasing the risk of toxic effects when exposed to organophosphorus pesticides.