Open Access

Occupational exposure to pesticides as a possible risk factor for the development of chronic diseases in humans (Review)

  • Authors:
    • Silvia Gangemi
    • Edoardo Miozzi
    • Michele Teodoro
    • Giusi Briguglio
    • Annamaria De Luca
    • Carmela Alibrando
    • Irene Polito
    • Massimo Libra
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: October 10, 2016     https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2016.5817
  • Pages: 4475-4488
  • Copyright: © Gangemi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

It is well known that pesticides are widely used compounds. In fact, their use in agriculture, forestry, fishery and the food industry has granted a huge improvement in terms of productive efficiency. However, a great number of epidemiological surveys have demonstrated that these toxic compounds can interact and exert negative effects not only with their targets (pests, herbs and fungi), but also with the rest of the environment, including humans. This is particularly relevant in the case of workers involved in the production, transportation, preparation and application of these toxicants. Accordingly, a growing body of evidence has demonstrated the correlation between occupational exposure to pesticides and the development of a wide spectrum of pathologies, ranging from eczema to neurological diseases and cancer. Pesticide exposure is often quite difficult to establish, as many currently used modules do not take into account all of the many variables that can occur in a diverse environment, such as the agricultural sector, and the assessment of the real risk for every single worker is problematic. Indeed, the use of personal protection equipment is necessary while handling these toxic compounds, but education of workers can be even more important: personal contamination with pesticides may occur even in apparently harmless situations. This review summarises the most recent findings describing the association between pesticide occupational exposure and the development of chronic diseases.
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November-2016
Volume 14 Issue 5

Print ISSN: 1791-2997
Online ISSN:1791-3004

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Spandidos Publications style
Gangemi S, Miozzi E, Teodoro M, Briguglio G, De Luca A, Alibrando C, Polito I and Libra M: Occupational exposure to pesticides as a possible risk factor for the development of chronic diseases in humans (Review). Mol Med Rep 14: 4475-4488, 2016.
APA
Gangemi, S., Miozzi, E., Teodoro, M., Briguglio, G., De Luca, A., Alibrando, C. ... Libra, M. (2016). Occupational exposure to pesticides as a possible risk factor for the development of chronic diseases in humans (Review). Molecular Medicine Reports, 14, 4475-4488. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2016.5817
MLA
Gangemi, S., Miozzi, E., Teodoro, M., Briguglio, G., De Luca, A., Alibrando, C., Polito, I., Libra, M."Occupational exposure to pesticides as a possible risk factor for the development of chronic diseases in humans (Review)". Molecular Medicine Reports 14.5 (2016): 4475-4488.
Chicago
Gangemi, S., Miozzi, E., Teodoro, M., Briguglio, G., De Luca, A., Alibrando, C., Polito, I., Libra, M."Occupational exposure to pesticides as a possible risk factor for the development of chronic diseases in humans (Review)". Molecular Medicine Reports 14, no. 5 (2016): 4475-4488. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2016.5817