TY - JOUR T1 - Respiratory status in dairy farmers in France; cross sectional and longitudinal analyses JF - Occupational and Environmental Medicine JO - Occup Environ Med SP - 858 LP - 863 DO - 10.1136/oem.60.11.858 VL - 60 IS - 11 AU - H Chaudemanche AU - E Monnet AU - V Westeel AU - D Pernet AU - A Dubiez AU - C Perrin AU - J-J Laplante AU - A Depierre AU - J-C Dalphin Y1 - 2003/11/01 UR - http://oem.bmj.com/content/60/11/858.abstract N2 - Aims: To compare respiratory status in dairy farmers with that of non-farming controls. Methods: Longitudinal study in the Doubs (France). From a cohort constituted in 1994 (T1), 215 (81.1%) dairy farmers and 110 (73.8%) controls were reevaluated in 1999 (T2). The protocol comprised a medical and occupational questionnaire, spirometric tests at both evaluations, allergological tests at T1, and a non-invasive measure of blood oxygen saturation (Spo2) at T2. Results: In 1999 analyses, the prevalence of chronic bronchitis was higher (p = 0.013), and FEV1/VC (p < 0.025) and Spo2 (−0.7%, p < 0.01) lower in dairy farmers than in controls. In a multiple linear regression model, farming, age, and smoking were significantly and inversely correlated with Spo2. In the whole population, the mean annual decline in FEV1 and FEV1/VC was −13.4 ml and −0.30%, respectively. Farming was associated with an accelerated decline in FEV1/VC (p < 0.025) after adjustment for covariates. No relation between allergy and respiratory function changes was observed, except for FEF25–75. Conclusions: This prospective study shows that dairy farming is associated with an excess of chronic bronchitis, with a moderate degree of bronchial obstruction and a mild decrease in Spo2. ER -