Respiratory Morbidity Among Seed-Processing Industry Workers: A Cross-Sectional Study in Rural West Bengal, 2022-2023

Seed processing workers are exposed to dust particles generated during the processing of seeds, which can have adverse effects on their respiratory health. Aim: to estimate the prevalence and patterns of respiratory morbidity among seed processing workers in Hooghly district, West Bengal, India, and to explore their use of respiratory personal protective equipment (PPE).

A cross sectional observational study was conducted in 5 seed processing plants from December 2022 to February 2023. A sample size of 129 workers was selected using probability proportionate to population size to select seed processing plants and simple random sampling to select workers at selected plants. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, occupational profile, substance use patterns, respiratory PPE use, and respiratory symptoms were collected through structured interviews. Spirometry was performed with a hand held tabletop spirometer (RMS Helios 401) to assess respiratory function.

52.7% of participants reported at least one chronic respiratory symptom, while 17.1% had evident respiratory morbidity based on spirometry results, with most having restrictive patterns (10.1%). Multivariable regression analysis revealed that factors associated with respiratory morbidity included increasing work years of exposure [1.10 (1.02 1.18)], irregular use of respiratory PPE [4.36 (1.22 15.57)], and primary or below education level [6.09 (1.38 26.98)].

The study highlights the high prevalence of respiratory symptoms and morbidity among seed processing workers. It emphasizes the importance of implementing effective respiratory protection measures and raising awareness about occupational lung diseases in this industry. Further research and interventions are needed to improve the respiratory health and well being of seed processing workers.