Impact of - IDL-BNC @ IDRC - International Development Research ...

Three of the four mixerloaders found the protective gloves uncomfortable to
wear. However, all four believed that their hands were being protected. Some
experienced difficulty in gripping equipment when wearing the gloves, and
two pairs of gloves had to be replaced because of abrasion or splitting. Workers
found the face shields comfortable to wear; no misting of the visors occurred.
The mixerloaders had no difficulty in keeping the face shields on during the
work periods. There were some complaints of reflection from the white
garments onto the face shields.
Health surveillance
No clinical signs or symptoms of intoxication by methamidophos were
reported or observed in anyone involved in the study. Although there were
slight variations in cholinesterase activity in blood samples from workers
during the study, all values were within normal ranges.
Discussion
Cotton protective garments of the design used in this study were comfortable
to wear in hot and humid climates. They showed little deterioration over the
period of use and provided as much or more protection from the organophosphorous
insecticide than the synthetic materials.
When the benefits of availability and general low cost are taken into account,
cotton has major advantages as a material for protective garments required by
pesticide workers in tropical climates. Further investigation into the protective
properties of cotton, i.e., variations in weight, thickness, and weave, would be
worthwhile.
The design of the protective garments was intended to provide some degree
of flexibility under field conditions. For example, workers are able to wear the
top and trousers separately or together over their normal work clothing
depending on the kind of work they are engaged in. Although this design is
recommended by the Working Group, it may not be acceptable esthetically in
all cultures and other designs may be more appropriate for some types of
pesticide application. However, the general principle of the design proved to
be successful in this study.
Nitrile rubber gloves, although somewhat uncomfortable, can be worn by
mixerloaders in hot and humid conditions and are, therefore, suitable for
handling pesticide concentrates under these conditions. The simple face shield
used in this study is also recommended.
The opportunity was taken during the study to seek the workers' opinions
about acquiring and wearing gloves and face shields in normal practice.
Commitment to wearing these protective items varied, even if they were made
readily available. This type of response is common (Jeyaratnam 1982) and
192