title: A survey of semen indices in insecticide sprayers.
abstract: This study aims at clarifying the semen indices of insecticide sprayers who are exposed mainly to organophosphorus and pyrethroid insecticides. Eighteen male sprayers out of 54 working for 9 companies in central Japan and 18 age-matched students or medical doctors as unexposed controls participated in detailed reproductive check-ups conducted in summer and the following winter. The sprayers were exposed to insecticides more in summer, the busiest season, than winter, the off-season (p<0.05). Erythrocyte true cholinesterase activities in the sprayers were lower than in the controls in summer (p<0.05), and decreased in significant association with the increase in exposure frequency. Testicular volumes in the sprayers tended to be smaller than in the controls (p=0.06). The serum testosterone concentration in winter in the sprayers was higher than in the controls (p<0.05), though luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone concentrations were not significantly different. The sperm counts and vitality were comparable between the groups, but detailed sperm motility analysis in summer revealed that the percentages of slow progressive and nonprogressive motile sperm were twice as high in the sprayers (p<0.05), and that of rapid progressive sperm tended to be lower (p=0.06). Such differences were not observed in winter. Differential sperm morphology counts showed that interaction of group and abstinence effects were significant in sperm with normal morphology and with head deformity only in the summer check-up. Despite possible inherent differences between the groups, the above season-dependent differences suggested that the observed lower semen quality in the sprayers was associated with pesticide spraying work.
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. kamijima@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Michihiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kamijima
authors.forename: Hatsuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hibi
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gotoh
authors.forename: Ken-ichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Taki
authors.forename: Isao
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Hailan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Seiichiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Itohara
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Gaku
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ichihara
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shibata
authors.forename: Tamie
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakajima
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takeuchi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000633:toxicity*; D005640:Follicle Stimulating Hormone / Q000097:blood; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007306:Insecticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D007564:Japan; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012621:Seasons; D012661:Semen / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D013076:Sperm Count; D013081:Sperm Motility / Q000187:drug effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D007306:Insecticides; D013739:Testosterone; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone; D005640:Follicle Stimulating Hormone