Abstract

“STUDY OF ELECTROLYTE CONCENTRATION IN PETROL PUMP WORKERS OF WESTERN MAHARASTRA.”

Patil Smita V.*, Gaikwad Pandurang B., Vinayak B. Gaikwad, Anita P. Mandare, Dr. Suvarna Jadhav and Dr. Aniruddha A. Varekar

Abstract

Background Long term exposure to solvents and air pollutants can lead to hazardous effects on respiratory, cellular and kidney Functions. Objective- The aim of this study is to investigate Electrolyte Concentration in petrol pump workers and also to check the electrolyte concentration with duration of exposure. Materials and Methods: - The study was conducted on 45 male petrol pump attendants between age group of 20- 40 years who were working as petrol filling attendant for more than one year from western Maharashtra. 45 normal healthy male with same socioeconomic status was chosen as control to find out the effect of occupational exposure to petroleum product on electrolyte concentration. Petrol pump attendants are divided into three groups based on their duration of exposure i.e. 1-5 yrs, 6- 10 yrs and more than 11 years. Electrolyte Concentration (Na+and K+) of petrol pump attendants and control was measured by using a flame photometer. Comparisons were performed using unpaired t-test for 2 group and one way ANOVA (Analysis Of Variance) for multiple groups of exposures. Results: Petrol pump workers shows significant (P<0.05) increase in serum potassium and sodium ion concentrations compared with the control group. As year of exposure increases mean value of serum potassium and sodium ion was significantly increases from 137.86, 145.83, 156.12 for Na+ and 3.818, 5.004, 6.230 for K+ respectively. Conclusion: The study suggests that long term inhalation of petrol fumes is associated with adverse effect on electrolyte concentration and kidney.

Keywords: Occupational exposure, Petrol pump workers, Potassium ion, Sodium ion.