Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Research Center for Health Sciences, Institute of Health, Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Environ Monit Assess. 2021 Mar 13;193(4):187. doi: 10.1007/s10661-021-08964-9.
Cypermethrin, a member of the synthetic pyrethroids group, is a popular insecticide used to eliminate a broad range of common bugs in agricultural lands and households. However, studies of farmers' exposure to this insecticide are limited. The present study aimed to measure the respiratory exposure to cypermethrin among farmers and farm workers of Shiraz, as one of the biggest cities in Fars province, Iran. Totally, nine target regions were selected, where 42 individual samples were taken using XAD-2 sorbents and were analyzed by gas chromatography-electron capture detector (GC-ECD). This is the first study on farmers' exposure to insecticides during spraying in Iran. The average concentration of cypermethrin vapor in farmers' respiratory area during spraying was 0.982 ± 0.421 mg/m, which was lower than the permitted threshold value for cypermethrin recommended by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The mean time-weighted average (TWA) was also evaluated in two distinct occupational groups (tree operators and field operators). The exposure was significantly higher in tree operators than in field operators. A direct correlation was also found between the height of the workers and the amount of cypermethrin (Spearman's r = 0.555). Findings support that farm workers' respiratory exposure to cypermethrin was within the permissible range, but this situation cannot guarantee workers' safety. Total respiratory exposure and skin exposure studies are recommended in future research.
氯菊酯是拟除虫菊酯类的一员，是一种常用于农业和家庭环境的杀虫剂，能有效消灭多种常见害虫。然而，关于农民接触此类杀虫剂的研究还很有限。本研究旨在测量伊朗法尔斯省最大城市之一设拉子的农民和农场工人接触氯菊酯的呼吸暴露情况。总共选择了九个目标区域，使用 XAD-2 吸附剂采集了 42 个个体样本，并通过气相色谱-电子俘获检测器（GC-ECD）进行分析。这是伊朗首次研究农民在喷洒杀虫剂时的暴露情况。在喷洒过程中，农民呼吸区域的氯菊酯蒸气平均浓度为 0.982±0.421mg/m，低于职业安全与健康管理局（OSHA）推荐的氯菊酯允许阈值。还评估了两个不同职业群体（树木作业者和田间作业者）的时间加权平均值（TWA）。树木作业者的暴露量明显高于田间作业者。工人的身高与氯菊酯的含量之间也存在直接相关性（Spearman r=0.555）。研究结果表明，农场工人接触氯菊酯的呼吸暴露量在允许范围内，但这种情况并不能保证工人的安全。建议在未来的研究中进行总呼吸暴露和皮肤暴露研究。
