Personal Dust Exposure and Its Determinants among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing in Ethiopia

Abaya, Samson Wakuma; Bråtveit, Magne; Deressa, Wakgari; Kumie, Abera; Moen, Bente E.

doi:10.1093/annweh/wxy079

Cited by 11 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…In the Tanzanian study, there were no difference in the FVC and FEV 1 between coffee workers and controls [ 12 ]. The considerably higher dust exposure in the Ethiopian study (GM = 12.3 mg/m 3 ) [ 13 ] compared to the levels reported for the processing of Arabica coffee in Tanzania (GM = 2.1 mg/m 3 ) [ 20 ] may have contributed to the difference in findings related to lung function. Also, the study conducted in Papua New Guinea, where the dust levels were lower than in the present study, did not find significant differences in FVC and FEV 1 /FVC between the coffee workers and controls.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The personal total dust was sampled in the workers’ breathing zone using 25-mm three pieces, conductive cassettes with a cellulose acetate filter attached to a Side Kick Casella (SKC) pump with a flow rate of 2 l min −1 [ 15 ] Altogether, 360 full-shift exposure measurements were conducted on randomly chosen days of the week, and repeated sampling was conducted the next day. The sampling process is described in a previous paper [ 13 ]. A total of 60 full-shift personal exposure measurements were conducted in the water bottling factories.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, the coffee pre-processing methods used on the farms in Ethiopia is different from the ones used in Tanzania. Moreover, a recent study conducted in the coffee factories of Ethiopia found much higher levels of personal dust exposure compared with the levels measured in the Tanzanian factories [ 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Reduced Lung Function among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Abaya

Bråtveit

Deressa

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Dust exposure is one of the major risk factors for respiratory health in many workplaces, including coffee factories. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and lung function reduction among workers in Ethiopian primary coffee processing factories, compared to a control group of workers. A total of 115 coffee workers and 110 water bottling workers were involved in this study, from 12 coffee and 3 water bottling factories in Ethiopia, respectively. The chronic respiratory symptoms were assessed using a structured interview, using a standardized questionnaire adopted from the American Thoracic Society (ATS). The lung function tests were performed according to the ATS recommendation for spirometry. The coffee workers had a significantly higher prevalence of coughing, coughing with sputum, breathlessness, work-related shortness of breath, and wheezing compared with the controls. The prevalence ratio of work-related shortness of breath (PR = 3.7, 95% CI: 1.6–8.7) and wheezing (PR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.3–8.4) was significantly higher for the coffee workers compared to the controls. The coffee workers in the age groups 28–39 years and ≥40 years, had a significantly lower forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in 1 s compared to the controls in the similar age groups. The findings indicated the need for longitudinal studies on the possible effect of coffee dust on respiratory health of coffee production workers.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reduced Lung Function among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Abaya

Bråtveit

Deressa

et al. 2018

IJERPH

Self Cite

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“…We assessed chronic respiratory symptoms (yes/no) using the American Thoracic Society (ATS) standardized questionnaire among the coffee production workers from two factories in Tanzania ( n = 140) in comparison with a control group from a beverage factory ( n = 120) ( 19 ). The same questionnaire was used in 12 coffee factories ( n = 115) and in three water bottling factories ( n = 110) in Ethiopia ( 18 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Lung function was measured by a portable spirometer (SPIRARE 3 sensor model SPS 320) in accordance with ATS guidelines for spirometry in Tanzania ( n = 140 coffee workers/120 controls) and Ethiopia ( n = 115 coffee workers/110 controls) ( 15 , 18 ). Of these 17 controls and 16 coffee workers were excluded from further analysis of lung function due to unacceptable spirograms.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dust Exposure and Respiratory Health Among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Tanzania and Ethiopia

Bråtveit

Abaya

Sakwari

et al. 2021

Front. Public Health

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Introduction: In primary coffee factories the coffee beans are cleaned and sorted. Studies from the 80- and 90-ties indicated respiratory health effects among the workers, but these results may not represent the present status. Our aim was to review recent studies on dust exposure and respiratory health among coffee factory workers in Tanzania and Ethiopia, two major coffee producing countries in Africa.Methods: This study merged data from cross-sectional studies from 2010 to 2019 in 4 and 12 factories in Tanzania and Ethiopia, respectively. Personal samples of “total” dust and endotoxin were taken in the breathing zone. Chronic respiratory symptoms were assessed using the American Thoracic Society (ATS) questionnaire. Lung function was measured by a spirometer in accordance with ATS guidelines.Results: Dust exposure among male production workers was higher in Ethiopia (GM 12 mg/m3; range 1.1–81) than in Tanzania (2.5; 0.24–36). Exposure to endotoxins was high (3,500; 42–75,083) compared to the Dutch OEL of 90 EU/m3. The male workers had higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms than controls. The highest symptom prevalence and odds ratio were found for cough (48.4%; OR = 11.3), while for breathlessness and wheezing the odds ratios were 3.2 and 2.4, respectively. There was a significant difference between the male coffee workers and controls in the adjusted FEV1 (0.26 l/s) and FVC (0.21 l) and in the prevalence of airflow limitation (FEV1/FVC < 0.7) (6.3 vs. 0.9%). Among the male coffee workers, there was a significant association between cumulative dust exposure and the lung function variables FEV1 and FVC, respectively.Conclusions: The results suggest that coffee production workers are at risk of developing chronic respiratory symptoms and reduced lung function, and that the findings are related to high dust levels. Measures to reduce dust exposure should be targeted to factors identified as significant determinants of exposure.

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Personal inhalable paper dust exposure and potential determinants among paper industry workers in Ethiopia

Tafese,

Kumie,

Abegaz

et al. 2024

Int Arch Occup Environ Health

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Purpose Excessive paper dust during paper production may harm the workers’ respiratory health. We wanted to assess the inhalable paper dust levels and its determinants among paper industry workers. Methods A study was conducted in Ethiopia to assess the level of personal inhalable paper dust exposure among four paper mills. A total of 150 samples were collected using the IOM sampler attached to Side Kick Casella pumps at a flow rate of 2 L/min. The samples were analyzed in Nemko Norlab, Norway. Linear mixed-effect models were applied to identify determinants of inhalable paper dust. Results The geometric mean of personal inhalable paper dust was 3.3 mg/m3 with 80% of the measurements exceeding the Swedish occupational exposure limit (OEL) of 2 mg/m3. The linear mixed-effects model showed that the level of dust was 28% higher when using high-speed than when using low-speed rewinding machines, while paper mills with an average of more than four machines per job group had 22% higher exposure than paper mills with a lower number of machines. Furthermore, working in packing and preparation was associated with higher dust exposure than in other areas. Conclusions The dust exposure levels were above the Swedish OEL for 80% of the samples. This indicates that preventive measures should be established in the industry. The exposure model identified high-speed rewinding machines, a high number of machines, and work in preparation and packing as associated with high levels of paper dust exposure.

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Personal Dust Exposure and Its Determinants among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing in Ethiopia

Cited by 11 publications

References 16 publications

Reduced Lung Function among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Reduced Lung Function among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Dust Exposure and Respiratory Health Among Workers in Primary Coffee Processing Factories in Tanzania and Ethiopia

Personal inhalable paper dust exposure and potential determinants among paper industry workers in Ethiopia

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