Abstract
Background: E-waste recycling activities and vehicular traffic can both release a mixture of pollutants such as heavy metals dust, persistent organic pollutants (PCBs and dioxins), carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO) etc. into the ambient air, exposure of which could lead to a variety of adverse health effects including respiratory health. No study has looked at the respiratory health of market women at the Agbogbloshie market.Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the effect of ambient air pollution on respiratory health of market women at the Agbogbloshie open food market, near the infamous e-waste recycling site.Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized cluster random sampling to recruit 45 market women, aged 45-81 years, after ethical approval had been sought from the Ministry of Health. Respiratory symptoms (self-reported) data was collected using a structured questionnaire, and lung function test done by spirometry to obtain indices Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), Forced Expiratory Volume in the first second (FEV1) and FEV1/FVC. Hourly average measurements of PM10, PM2.5 and CO2 were taken using Met One Aerocet Comet 860 and Hobo CO2 monitor respectively. Multiple regression analysis was used to test for association between pulmonary function indices, respiratory symptoms and alcohol use.Results: Respiratory symptoms were high among market women. Multivariate analysis of covariates showed the ff; increase in the frequency of wheezing and difficulty in breathing resulted in 0.081 (8.1%) and 0.133 (13.3%) reduction in lung function, (p=0.020), (p=0.024) respectively. Traders who were alcohol users had 0.122 (12.2%) reduction in lung function (adjusted). Daily PM10, PM2.5 and CO2 ranges were (492.41-1690.62), (72.09-168.84 μg/m3) and (3053.33-3635.22 ppm) respectively.Conclusion: Agbogbloshie market women have high prevalence of respiratory symptoms such as cough, colds, sore throat and repeated sneezing, and reduced pulmonary function indices.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
