Abstract
A prospective study of respiratory function was performed in a group of 70 jute and 40 control workers. At the initial study there were consistently higher prevalences of all chronic respiratory symptoms in jute workers compared to control workers; however, the differences were statistically significant only for dyspnea (P < 0.05). At the follow-up study 19 out of the original 70 jute workers were examined 19 years later. There was a significant increase in the prevalence of almost all chronic respiratory symptoms among these workers. Similar across-shift reductions of forced vital capacity (FVC) and the 1-s forced expiratory volume (FEVI) were recorded on Monday and the following Thursday at the initial study. In the 19 jute workers followed prospectively there were similar across-shift reductions of FVC and FEVI at the first and the follow-up study, the reduction being slightly larger for FEV1 than for FVC. Only one jute worker (5.3%) and two control workers (5.7%) responded to skin testing with specific textile extracts. Two workers developed symptoms of occupational asthma. One of these workers had a positive response to skin testing with jute extract. Our data suggest that exposure to jute dust may cause the development of chronic respiratory symptoms in some workers.
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Zuskin, E., Kanceljak, B., Mustajbegovic, J. et al. Respiratory function and immunological reactions in jute workers. Int. Arch Occup Environ Heath 66, 43–48 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00386578
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00386578