title: Respiratory Disorders Among Workers in Slaughterhouses.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Workers in slaughterhouses are exposed to a wide range of biological contaminants, such as bacteria and fungi, due to their working environment. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of respiratory disorders among workers in slaughterhouses.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted on 81 workers in slaughterhouses and 81 healthy office workers as a reference group. The American Thoracic Society standard respiratory symptoms questionnaire was used to determine the prevalence of respiratory disorders. Besides, lung function tests were conducted using a calibrated spirometer at the beginning (preshift) and at the end (postshift) of the 1stworking day. Single-stage Anderson sampler was used to measure the concentration of bioaerosols in different parts of slaughterhouses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of respiratory disorders, such as cough, productive cough, breathlessness, phlegm, and wheezing, was 3.17, 4.02, 3.07, 4.66, and 3.94 times, respectively, higher among workers in slaughterhouses compared with the reference group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of respiratory disorders was significantly higher among workers in slaughterhouses. Thus, the significant reduction in the percentage predicted lung function among workers in slaughterhouses might be associated with exposure to bioaerosols in their work environment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Health, Student Research Committee, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: Abbasali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kasaeinasab
authors.affiliation: Research Center for Health Sciences, Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: Mehdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jahangiri
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Health, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karimi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamid Reza
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Tabatabaei
authors.affiliation: Enthusiast, London, UK.
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Safari
keywords: bioaerosols; environmental contamination; industrial slaughterhouses; lung function parameters; respiratory disorder