Pathogen risks assessment for employees carrying out landspreading of biosolid
Brunet, H., SEDE, France
(free)
The SYPREA (French Association for Sludge Landspreading) has launched in 2008 a study to determine if the employees in charge of the Biosolid application are exposed to an excess of pathogens risk compared to a control population.
The study was conducted by ABR Pharma, a clinical research organization specialized in pharmaceutical epidemiology.
205 employees have accepted to participate: 108 were included in the exposed group and 97 in the non-exposed one.
The characteristics of each group, the types of Biosolid, the landspreading conditions and the prevention behaviours were monitored.
Data from health events have been analyzed:
- comparison of numbers of subjects who reported the occurrence of sickness
during the spreading campaign,
- calculation of the incidence of diarrhea episodes,
- calculation of relative risk of occurrence of diarrhea in the exposed group compared to the unexposed group.
In conclusion, this study did not show a significant increase in gastrointestinal disorders for the employees in charge of the landspreading operations compared to the control population.
Among the employees conducting landspreading, no differences were observed between those with episodes of diarrhea and those without such episodes due to the type and the quantity of Biosolid applied and the compliance with hygiene measures. These results are consistent with data from literature.
The occurrence of respiratory, skin or eye problems, headache and sinusitis, was not more common in employees in charge of landspreading than in the group not exposed to Biosolid.
