A Survey on Chemical Hazards and Liver Function in Rubber Industry Workers in Iran

Rubber industries workers are at risk of hepatic dysfunction from exposure to rubber dust and a mixture of different hydrocarbons. This study aimed to evaluate the relation between chemical hazards in workplace and serum hepatic transaminases in rubber industry workers in Iran. This historical cohort study was conducted in a rubber-manufacturing industry in Mashhad. It con-sisted of 91 workers with chemical substances exposure and 85 workers not exposed to chemicals. Hepatic transaminases including alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) were compared between these two groups. Required data were collected through questionnaire, liver enzymes evaluation, and environmental monitoring of chemical substances. The data were analyzed with SPSS 11.5. A total of 176 workers enrolled in this study included 113 (64.2%) male and 73 (35.8%) female. The mean of age and employment duration in exposed group were 29.22 ± 3.99 and 5.41 ± 2.77 and in non-exposed group were 30.33 ± 4.11 and 5.29 ± 2.77 respectively. The mean of ALT in exposed and non-exposed groups was 31.3 ± 8.04 and 23.8 ± 10.42 (p = 0.01) and the mean of AST was 29.6 ± 9.7 and 27.3 ± 8.2 (p = 0.1) respectively. A significant difference was shown between mean of ALT at the date of employment and at the time of the study in exposed group. According to our findings evaluation of serum transaminases is a useful screening method which might be beneficial in early detection of hepatocellular injuries in rubber industry workers.