A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY OF MORBIDITY PROFILE AND THEIR ASSOCIATION AMONG RICE MILL WORKERS IN KARIMNAGAR MANDAL, TELANGANA, INDIA
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Keywords
Rice mill workers; Occupational health hazards; Respiratory and musculoskeletal morbidities
Abstract
Introduction: Rice mill workers are potentially exposed to dusts and synthetic chemicals that may have adverse effects on their health. Workers often adopt awkward postures while load handling which in-turn leads to musculoskeletal morbidities and reduced quality of life. Hence, this study was conducted with the following objectives.
Objectives: To study the (1) socio demographic profile; (2) morbidity profile and (3) their association in rice mill workers.
Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional, observational study conducted among rice mill workers in Karimnagar mandal between September 1st 2018 and December 31st 2018 after obtaining Institutional Ethics Committee approval.
Results: Out of a total of 273 rice mill workers, majority were males (73.63 %), rural residents (65.57%), belonged to Low socio-economic status (65.57%) and have worked in rice mills for > 10yrs (45.06%). Major proportion of them were Coolies (44.68%) followed by Helpers (19.06%). Most of them experienced respiratory morbidities (46.89%) followed by musculoskeletal complaints (45.79%) with cough (34.8%) being the major respiratory manifestation. Around 20.51% of participants had allergic conjunctivitis and 6.23% subjects showed contact dermatitis. Majority of the participants (80.22%) were normotensives. Increased duration of work in rice mill was associated with statistically significant increased manifestation of respiratory (p< 0.0001) and musculoskeletal (p=0.0003) morbidities as well as hypertension (p=0.0028).
Conclusion: There is potential risk for development of respiratory and musculoskeletal morbidities with increasing exposure to dust in rice mills emphasizing the need for creating awareness through effective health education programs and periodic medical examinations to improve their health and safety.
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Dr. Bharat Kumar Samatham
Assistant Professor, Department of Community Medicine, CMR Institute of Medical Sciences, Kandla Koya, Telangana, India
Dr. Balla Krishna Sowmya
Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Mamata Academy of Medical Sciences, Bachupally, Telangana, India
Dheeraj Neerati
Medical Intern, Mamata Academy of Medical Sciences, Bachupally, Telangana, India