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. 2003 Nov;60(11):858–863. doi: 10.1136/oem.60.11.858

Respiratory status in dairy farmers in France; cross sectional and longitudinal analyses

H Chaudemanche 1, E Monnet 1, V Westeel 1, D Pernet 1, A Dubiez 1, C Perrin 1, J Laplante 1, A Depierre 1, J Dalphin 1
PMCID: PMC1740421  PMID: 14573716

Abstract

Aims: To compare respiratory status in dairy farmers with that of non-farming controls.

Methods: Longitudinal study in the Doubs (France). From a cohort constituted in 1994 (T1), 215 (81.1%) dairy farmers and 110 (73.8%) controls were reevaluated in 1999 (T2). The protocol comprised a medical and occupational questionnaire, spirometric tests at both evaluations, allergological tests at T1, and a non-invasive measure of blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) at T2.

Results: In 1999 analyses, the prevalence of chronic bronchitis was higher (p = 0.013), and FEV1/VC (p < 0.025) and SpO2 (-0.7%, p < 0.01) lower in dairy farmers than in controls. In a multiple linear regression model, farming, age, and smoking were significantly and inversely correlated with SpO2. In the whole population, the mean annual decline in FEV1 and FEV1/VC was -13.4 ml and -0.30%, respectively. Farming was associated with an accelerated decline in FEV1/VC (p < 0.025) after adjustment for covariates. No relation between allergy and respiratory function changes was observed, except for FEF25–75.

Conclusions: This prospective study shows that dairy farming is associated with an excess of chronic bronchitis, with a moderate degree of bronchial obstruction and a mild decrease in SpO2.

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Selected References

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