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

activity (< 62.5%), which is of concern, as these women are of reproductive
age and could suffer chronic damage that could be passed onto their offspring.
Of the agricultural workers with reduced cholinesterase activity, 15.4% were
between 12 and 18 years of age.
Cholinesterase and spraying time
Of the DE workers in the lowlands, 24.4% have only been using pesticides for
1 year, 49.6% for 2-5 years, 15.3% for 6-9 years, and 10.7% have been using
pesticides for over 10 years. In this same group, 46.2% of those with reduced
cholinesterase levels have been using pesticides for 1 year, 38.5% for 2-5 years,
and 7.7% for 6-9 years. This information confirms that the agricultural workers
most affected are those who have been using pesticides for 1-5 years, who
have little work experience, and who, for the most part, have come from other
areas.
DE workers who had sprayed pesticides within the last 14 days were tested
for cholinesterase activity. Of those exposed on the day of the test, 13.3%
showed reduced levels of activity (625% of normal level); 7.4% of those who
had used pesticides within the last 2-7 days were similarly affected. This high
proportion of workers showing the biological effects of organophosphate
poisoning dramatically illustrates the severity of this problem to public health
in the eastern lowlands of Bolivia.
Symptoms and signs
The main symptoms found by order of importance are: severe headaches,
abdominal colic, and palpitations; no significant differences were noted
among the three groups studied, and the symptoms were not significantly
correlated to reduced level of cholinesterase activity. In general, the signs were
negative, demonstrating that these variables in this type of study are less
important and may be the result of the exhausting work typical in agriculture
and of the harshness of the climate.
Basic health and hygiene
In general, the dwellings of agricultural workers in the lowlands are
improvised (pawichis), and do not provide any of the basic conditions for
well-being.
During our travels, we encountered 12 health-care posts (two in the lowlands)
without professional staff or a medical kit to treat cases of poisoning. Sanitation
and hygiene are lacking. Pit latrines were used on 46% of the properties;
however, most labourers do not use them, but prefer the open field. Water for
domestic use is obtained from wells or nearby rivers. Leftover pesticides are
disposed of, by washing the containers or tanks, in the same water.
82