Table 4.
Socio-demographic characteristics, use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and working conditions of agricultural workers in the Maule Region, Chile. Applicator indicates subjects who reported applying pesticides OP in their work (frequency, percentage and chi square test).
| Non-applicator n = 38 | Applicator n = 76 | Total n = 114 | p-value (0.05) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | ||
| Gender | ||||
| - Male | 14(19) | 60(81) | 74(65) | <0.0001 |
| - Female | 24(60) | 16(40) | 40(35) | |
| Age | ||||
| - 49 years or less | 16(33) | 32(67) | 48(42) | 0.999 |
| - More than 49 years | 22(33) | 44(67) | 66(58) | |
| Years of education | ||||
| - Secondary education or higher | 16(44) | 20(56) | 36(32) | 0.087 |
| - Secondary not finished or lower | 22(28) | 56(72) | 78(68) | |
| Use PPE body | 9(20) | 37(80) | 46(41) | 0.013 |
| Use PPE head | 21(34) | 40(66) | 61(54) | 0.791 |
| Use PPE hands | 12(27) | 33(73) | 45(39) | 0.223 |
| Use PPE respiratory | 10(22) | 35(78) | 45(39) | 0.042 |
| Use PPE eyes | 13(28) | 34(72) | 47(41) | 0.282 |
| Use PPE feet | 15(22) | 54(78) | 69(61) | 0.001 |
| PPE frequency of use | ||||
| - Always | 13(48) | 14(52) | 27(24) | 0.150 |
| - Sometimes | 15(31) | 33(69) | 48(42) | |
| - Never | 10(26) | 29(74) | 39(34) | |
| Sanitation facilities | 23(47) | 34(53) | 49(43) | 0.593 |
| Training on pesticide use from occupational safety agency | 8(44) | 10(56) | 18(16) | 0.289 |
| Occupational safety agency tested for Acetyl cholinesterase activity | 12(29) | 30(71) | 42(37) | 0.410 |