Occupational exposure to respirable and inhalable dust and its components in a Nicaraguan sugarcane plantation
研究了尼加拉瓜甘蔗工人对可吸入性和吸入性粉尘及其成分（内毒素、黑碳、结晶二氧化硅）的个人暴露水平，发现不同工种暴露差异显著，烧蔗收割工和种子切割工暴露较高。
Objective To assess personal exposure to respirable and inhalable dust and its components endotoxin, black carbon and crystalline silica among sugarcane workers in Nicaragua. Methods Individual exposures to respirable (measurements=98) and inhalable (measurements=36) dust were collected in January and March 2020, with the month of March generally being hotter and less humid. Respirable dust and its components black carbon and crystalline silica, as well as inhalable dust and its component endotoxin, were personally measured. Linear mixed models were used to identify the determinants of occupational dust exposure considering different job tasks and meteorological conditions. Results Respirable dust and black carbon concentrations were higher in March among burned cane cutters compared with the other job groups (respirable dust geometric mean (GM)=1.9 mg m −3 ; black carbon GM=13.7 µg m −3 ), with considerably lower levels in January (respirable dust GM=0.2 mg m −3 ; black carbon GM=3.4 µg m −3 ). Almost all respirable crystalline silica measurements were below the limit of detection, except for four measurements, which ranged from 8 µg m − ³ to 15 µg m − ³. Seed cutters (GM=3.1 mg m −3 ) and weeders (GM=2.5 mg m −3 ) had the highest exposure to inhalable dust, while endotoxin concentrations were higher among seed cutters (GM=100 EU m −3 ) and burned cane cutters (GM=63 EU m −3 ) than the other work groups. Conclusions Overall, exposure levels to the assessed agents varied across work groups, with higher levels observed among burned cane and seed cutters.