Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 8, 2026

Cigarette Smoke Exposure in Mice using a Whole-Body Inhalation System
Published on: October 22, 2020
Green tobacco sickness and skin integrity among migrant Latino farmworkers
Thomas A Arcury1, Quirina M Vallejos, Mark R Schulz
1Department of Family and Community Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1084, USA. tarcury@wfubmc.edu
Background:
Green tobacco sickness (GTS) affects approximately one-quarter of tobacco workers. The primary aim of this analysis is to expand existing knowledge of GTS risk factors by delineating the association of measures of skin integrity with the prevalence of GTS among Latino farmworkers.
Methods:
Data are from a longitudinal study of skin disease among 304 North Carolina Latino farmworkers conducted in 2005.
Results:
18.4% of the farmworkers met the GTS case definition. Self-reported rash increased the odds of having GTS in the bivariate (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.21, 4.35), and multivariate analyses (OR 3.30, CI 2.17, 5.02). Self-reported itch (OR 3.54, CI 2.38, 5.24) and superficial wounds (OR 2.49, CI 1.15, 5.39) had a significant relationship to GTS in the bivariate analysis.
Conclusions:
These analyses extend current knowledge of GTS risk factors to include skin integrity. Farmworkers with rash and other skin conditions can protect these affected skin areas from exposure to the tobacco plant to reduce their risk of GTS.
Related Concept Videos
American Trypanosomiasis
Changes in Skin Color: Clinical Perspectives
Albinism
Albinism is a genetic disorder that affects (completely or partially) the coloring of skin, hair, and eyes. The defect is primarily...
Skin Diseases and Disorders
Gram-positive Staphylococcus spp. and Streptococcus spp. are responsible for many of the most common skin infections. However, many...
Amebiasis
Giardiasis
Pulmonary Tuberculosis I
Causative Organism
The primary infectious agent causing tuberculosis is Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a slow-growing, acid-fast, aerobic rod that exhibits sensitivity to heat and ultraviolet light. Instances of Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium avium contributing to the development of TB infection are rare.
Mode of...

