Characterization of Heat-Related Illness in Central Florida Farmworkers

描述（由申请人提供）：随着地球表面变暖，热相关疾病（HRI）正在成为对公众健康的严重威胁。某些职业群体的HRI风险增加，包括农业工人。在这些危险的职业环境中进行日常工作，如果没有充分的休息，可能导致HRI级联恶化，在极端情况下从热痉挛到多器官衰竭。如果农业工人的工作环境湿度过高、气流不足，从而绕过了人体传统的热调节机制，那么某些亚群的风险尤其高。这些工作条件挑战了身体的适应能力，并可能导致HRI级联更快速地向下发展，增加了与热有关的发病率和死亡率的风险。本探索性研究的目的是表征佛罗里达州农业工人的工作环境，并探讨个人因素与他们在工作环境中对热应激的生理反应之间的关系。在佛罗里达州中部总共招募了60名讲西班牙语的农业工人，1)描述这些工人的职业环境；2)描述他们对热应激的生理反应；3)记录自我报告的HRI症状；4)评估工作实践和工作强度。三种类型的农业工人将被抽样：1)蕨类工人，2)作物工人和3)苗圃工人。据推测，与在苗圃作业或露天作物地里工作的工人相比，在阳光直射的环境中工作的蕨类工人，在炎热、高湿度的环境中工作会有更高水平的非补偿性热应激。了解农业工作实践、个体风险因素和在危险的极端高温环境下工作的生理反应，将有助于指导热预防策略，减少这一弱势群体中与热相关的健康差异。本研究的结果还将扩大人力资源研究所的知识，并有助于为其他弱势工作人群提供干预措施。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): As the earth's surface warms, heat-related illness (HRI) is emerging as a serious threat to public health. Certain occupational groups are at an increased risk for HRI, including agricultural workers. Routine work in these hazardous occupational settings without adequate respite may lead to progression down the HRI cascade, ranging from heat cramps to multi-organ failure in extreme cases. Some subpopulations of agricultural workers are at particular high risk if excessively high levels of humidity and low airflow characterize their work environments, circumventing the body's traditional heat regulatory mechanisms. These work conditions challenge the body's capacity to adapt and may lead to more rapid progression down the HRI cascade, potentiating the risk of heat-related morbidity and mortality. The goal of this exploratory research is to characterize the work environment of agricultural workers in the state of Florida and explore the relationships between personal factors and physiologic responses to heat stress in their work environment. A total of 60 Spanish-speaking, agricultural workers in Central Florida will be recruited to 1) characterize the occupational environment of these workers 2) characterize their physiologic responses to heat stress; 3) document self-reported HRI symptoms; and 4) assess work practices and work intensity. Three types of agricultural workers will be sampled: 1) fernery workers, 2) crop workers, and 3) nursery workers. It is hypothesized that fernery workers who are protected from direct sun, but who experience a hot, high humidity environment will have higher levels of uncompensated heat stress when compared to workers in nursery operations or in open crop fields. Knowledge about agricultural work practices, individual risk factors and physiologic responses to work in hazardous extreme heat environments will help direct heat prevention strategies and decrease heat-related health disparities in this vulnerable population. Results from this study will also expand HRI knowledge and contribute to interventions for other vulnerable working populations.