期刊名称：Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine
印刷版ISSN：1232-1966
电子版ISSN：1898-2263
出版年度：2007
卷号：14
期号：02
页码：341-341
出版社：Institute of Agricultural Medicine in Lublin
摘要：The aim of the presented study was to determine the health status of workers
occupationally exposed to moderate amounts of organic dust, employed in a modern
hatchery with an effi cient ventilation system. A group of 32 hatchery workers was examined.
As a reference group, 50 urban dwellers not exposed to any kind of organic dust
were examined. All people were interviewed for the presence of work-related symptoms
and subjected to physical and spirometric examinations. Blood sera were examined for
the presence of precipitins against 13 antigens associated with organic dust, and for the
presence of total and chicken-specifi c No signifi cant differences were found between the
spirometric values in the group of hatchery workers and the reference group. Positive precipitin
reactions were noted mostly with the antigens of Gram-negative bacteria associated
with organic dust. The frequencies of positive reactions to antigens of Escherichia coli
and Acinetobacter baumannii in hatchery workers were signifi cantly greater compared to
the reference group (p<0.05). Precipitin reactions to Gram-positive non-branching bacteria,
actinomycetes, fungi and bird protein, were rare or absent. The mean concentration of
total IgE in sera of hatchery workers was nearly 3 times greater compared to the reference
group, and the difference proved to be statistically signifi cant (p<0.05). No specifi c IgE
antibodies against chicken feathers were detected in the blood of hatchery workers and
referents. In conclusion, the examined hatchery workers showed a moderate frequency of
work-related symptoms, no decline in lung function and low reactivity to most microbial
and bird protein allergens. These results suggest that the effects of exposure to organic
dust in workers of modern hatcheries with an effi cient ventilation system are less compared
to the workers of poultry farms, such as broiler or egg laying houses.
