Pesticide exposure and acute health problems among pesticide processing industry workers in Ethiopia

Occupational exposure to pesticides` manufacturing, formulating and applications can have a potential to harm humans` health in acutely or chronically. This study aims to assess pesticide exposure and acute pesticide intoxication among pesticide processing industry workers in Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 90 male pesticide processing industry workers` through face-to-face interviews. Data were collected using kobo Collect v2024.1.3 and exported to SPSS version 27 for analysis. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression were applied for statistical data analysis. The overall prevalence of acute pesticide intoxication (API) was 80 % (95 % CI 71.1 % - 87.4 %). Approximately, 60 %, 46.7 %, 42.2 %, 38.9 % and 33.3 % of the study participants reported experiencing pesticide exposure-related muscle weakness, headache, eye irritation, skin irritations and upper respiratory tract irritation, respectively. The factor found to be associated with pesticide intoxication was the improper utilization of personal protective equipment (PPE) regardless of time and season (AOR, 11; 95 % CI, 2.29, 48.83). Pesticide exposure-related acute health effects are a significant occupational health concern in this study. Inadequate and improper use of PPE increases the risk of these health effects. Therefore, proper PPE utilization and strict enforcement are crucial for protection.