Serum copper levels among quartz stone crushing workers: a cross sectional study

The present cross sectional study was carried out among 134 workers of quartz stone crushing units to assess the serum Cu activity among quartz stone workers without disease. Demographic and occupational details of the subjects were recorded on the predesigned proforma. Standard diagnostic criteria...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Indian journal of physiology and pharmacology 2004-07, Vol.48 (3), p.337
Main Authors: Tiwari, Rajnarayan R, Sathwara, Nattubhai G, Saiyed, Habibullah N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Analysis of Variance
Copper - blood
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Humans
Male
Mining
Occupational Diseases - blood
Occupational Diseases - etiology
Quartz - adverse effects
Quartz - metabolism
Silicosis - blood
Silicosis - etiology
Smoking - blood
Tuberculosis - blood
Tuberculosis - etiology
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Summary:The present cross sectional study was carried out among 134 workers of quartz stone crushing units to assess the serum Cu activity among quartz stone workers without disease. Demographic and occupational details of the subjects were recorded on the predesigned proforma. Standard diagnostic criteria were used for diagnosing silicosis and tuberculosis. The pulmonary functions of the subjects were measured using Spirovit SP-10. The mean age for male was found to be 26.63 +/- 6.28 years while that for female was 21.93 +/- 4.29 years and for the whole group was 26.13 +/- 6.26 years. In the present study only one case of silicosis and seven cases of tuberculosis were found. The mean serum Cu levels of those having respiratory disease was found to be 91.5 +/- 19.8 microg/dl while mean serum Cu level of those free from respiratory disease was 86.8 +/- 21.3 microg/dl The difference was found to be statistically non-significant (t = 0.64, df= 1, P > 0.05). Thus, in the present study, though the elevated level of serum Cu was found in solitary case of silicosis, no association could be established between the silica exposure and serum copper levels as suggested by non-significant effect of duration of exposure (P = 0.53).
ISSN:0019-5499