Profiling physiological responses and respirator fit of public health workers: Pre and post mosquito control activity
Introduction: Respirators play an important role in protecting public health workers from inhaling hazardous substances during pesticide spraying. The fit of the respirator to the face determines how well it works. However, spraying activity conducted while wearing a respirator in a hot climate may...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Conference or Workshop Item |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/98328/1/98328_Profiling%20physiological%20responses.pdf http://irep.iium.edu.my/98328/ |
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| Summary: | Introduction: Respirators play an important role in protecting public health workers from inhaling hazardous substances during pesticide spraying. The fit of the respirator to the face determines how well it works. However, spraying activity conducted while wearing a respirator in a hot climate may influence the worker's physiological changes and respirator fit. The study aimed to measure the physiological and respirator fit changes of the mosquito control workers in pesticide spraying. Materials and Methods: Pre-test and post test data on respirator fit factor, sweat rate (g.m-1h-1), heart rate (bpm) and breathing rate (bpm) were collected from 43 workers involved in pesticide spraying. Malaysian meteorological data was used to obtain temperature and humidity information. A paired-t test was used to show any differences in respirator fit and physiological parameters for the respirator user. Results: The respondents were all men, with a mean age of 39±7.1 years. During the fieldwork study, the temperature and humidity ranges were 22oC–34oC and 49%–95%, respectively. There were significant differences in post-spraying activity compared with baseline: breathing rate (pre-, mean of 19.49, SD=4.78; post-, mean of 23.56, SD = 4.45; t(42)=-4.67, (p=0.05), heart rate (pre-, geometric mean (GM) = 97.72, SD = 1.17; post-, GM = 112.20, SD = 1.12; t(42)=-10.11,(p=0.05), sweat rate (pre-, GM = 18.62, SD = 1.66; t(42)=-8.67, (p=0.05). However, there were no significant changes in the respirator fit factor. Conclusion: In conclusion, the use of respirators during pesticide spraying activities under hot and humid conditions can result in considerable changes in the physiological parameters of the workers |
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