Feed-associated respiratory illness in farmers.

Abstract

A variety of respiratory hazards are present in the farm environment. Disorders such as Silo Filler's Disease and Farmer's Lung Disease have been detailed in the literature. A retrospective study of hospital visits for farm-associated lung injury in rural Otsego County, New York during an 11-yr period is reported herein. Twenty-two males and 1 female experienced a total of 26 episodes of illness. Eighty-four percent of the episodes occurred between July 1 and October 31. Four of the 23 individuals died, 2 acutely and 2 after a slowly progressive, debilitating disease. One patient died of suffocation in a silo; 2 patients had Silo Filler's Disease, 1 dying acutely. Of 6 patients with Farmer's Lung Disease, 2 died of progressive fibrosis. The remaining 14 patients suffered an acute febrile illness typified by short duration, clear chest radiograph, and negative serologies. We refer to this as "Silo Unloader's Syndrome" and conclude that it is a more common occurrence in the farm environment than some of the more known disorders. This study demonstrates that occupational lung injury is a problem affecting a young (average age 36 yr) vigorous population with potentially fatal consequences.