Table 2.
Crude and adjusted 1 means and 95% confidence intervals of nuclear anomalies per 1000 cells in conventional and ecological farmworkers.
| Endpoint | Conventional Farmworkers (n = 31) | Ecological Farmworkers (n = 37) | p-Value 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adj.Mean (95% CI) | Crude Mean (95% CI) | Adj.Mean (95% CI) | Crude Mean (95% CI) | ||
| Total Mni | 4.23 (3.74–4.79) | 4.19 (3.71–4.74) | 1.62 (1.36–1.94) | 1.65 (1.38–1.97) | <0.001 |
| MN | 3.30 (2.87–3.79) | 3.27 (2.85–3.76) | 1.31 (1.07–1.60) | 1.34 (1.10–1.63) | <0.001 |
| BUD | 5.28 (4.72–5.89) | 5.34 (4.79–5.95) | 2.92 (2.56–3.35) | 2.92 (2.55–3.34) | <0.001 |
| BN | 25.00 (23.27–26.86) | 25.03 (23.33–26.86) | 18.55 (17.20–20.01) | 18.54 (17.20–19.98) | <0.001 |
| KR | 45.46 (43.11–47.95) | 46.48 (44.14–48.95) | 35.16 (33.27–37.15) | 35.03 (33.17–36.99) | <0.001 |
| CC | 53.53 (50.97–56.22) | 54.77 (52.23–57.44) | 40.97 (38.93–43.12) | 40.86 (38.86–42.98) | <0.001 |
| KL | 77.26 (74.17–80.47) | 76.35 (73.34–79.49) | 62.31 (59.78–64.93) | 63.30 (60.78–65.91) | <0.001 |
| PY | 4.21 (3.53–5.01) | 4.19 (3.53–4.98) | 3.78 (3.20–4.47) | 3.97 (3.38–4.67) | 0.389 |
| BASAL | 8.35 (7.38–9.46) | 8.48 (7.52–9.57) | 8.14 (7.25–9.12) | 8.08 (7.22–9.05) | 0.764 |
1 adjusted for age, smoking (N. conv. = 3, eco. = 3), tobacco chewing (N. conv. = 2, eco. = 0), alcohol consumption (N. conv. = 16, eco. = 14), and spicy food intake (N. conv. = 25, eco. = 12). Total MNi: Total number of micronuclei; MN: micronucleated cells; BUD: Cells with nuclear buds (“broken egg”); BN: Binucleated cells; KR: Karyorrhexis; CC: Condensed chromatin; KL: Karyolysis; PY: Pyknosis; BASAL: Basal cells; Significant (Bonferroni–Holm corrected). Crude and adjusted means differed only slightly, showing that potential confounders corrected for had little impact. Out of the group of ecological farmers (n = 37), 14 reported that they had used pesticides in the past. A comparison between “never-users” (ecological farmworkers without pesticide experience in the past) and “ex-users” (ecological farmworkers with pesticide exposure in the past) showed that “ex-users” and “never-users” did not differ significantly in any of the assessed nuclear anomalies.