[Epidemiology of chronic non-specific lung disease in persons employed in animal production]

In 2,091 agricultural workers (animal production, plant production, agrochemistry) the parameters of ventilatory screening FVC and FEV 1.0 were investigated, completed by determination of PaO2 in 1,324 persons with the intention of making evident differences of pulmonary function for diagnosis between these fields of activity. The persons employed in animal production showed more obstructive disturbances of ventilation and highly significantly lower values of PaO2 than the persons in plant production. The regression-coefficient b1 for the decrease of PaO2 in dependence on the duration of activity was more than double as high in animal production than in plant production. The exposure to organic dust (of irritative, allergenic, infectious, toxic action) must be regarded as the essential etiologic factor in animal production.