Assessment of dust characteristics related to adverse respiratory health effects among building construction workers

This cross-sectional study was conducted on the physicochemical characteristics of dust and its adverse respiratory health effects among building construction workers regarding low-rise building construction. A personal air sampling of TD, RD, and PM2.5 was accompanied according to NIOSH 0500, NIOSH 0600, and EPA-IP-10A and taken to analyze the physicochemical characteristics using XRD, SEM, and ICP-OES. The respiratory symptoms were assessed using the ATS-DLD questionnaire, and spirometry was considered a lung impairment of the workers. The data were collected from January 2022 to June 2022.The demographic data, physicochemical characteristics of dust, respiratory symptoms, and lung function of the workers were described using descriptive statistics. The difference in mean concentration levels of TD, RD, and PM2.5 in and between the sites was established using the One-Way ANOVA. The correlation between personal characteristics and adverse respiratory health effects was implemented using the Chi-Square Test. Factors related to the respiratory symptoms of the workers were achieved using Multiple Logistic Regression Analysis. Factors related to FVC%, FEV1%, and FEV1/FVC% were using the Multiple Regression Analysis. The significance value was set at a p-value of 0.05. The result revealed that column casting, cut wire and steel rod and bundle, masonry, plastering, concrete drilling, and sweep cleaning were tasks found in all building constructions. Of the 350 workers, 206 were males, and 144 were females, aged 18-58 years old, and had been employed year in construction for about 1-46 years. The physicochemical characteristics of dust presented morphology in an irregular shape. The XRD pattern of all samples (TD, RD, and PM2.5) showed a broad peak of silica amorphous and a shooting peak of CaCO3, SiO2, Al2O3, CaO, Fe2O2, FeO3, FeO4, and MgO. Moreover, the highest weight percent of elements found were Ca, Fe, Si, Al, and Mg in all samples. The highest concentration of TD, RD, and PM2.5 was found at site 2; 1.69 ± 0.57 mg/m3, with a range of 1.27-3.48 mg/m3, 1.23 ± 0.30 mg/m3 with a range of 1.01-1.87 mg/m3, and 0.95 ± 0.18 mg/m3 with a range of 0.79-1.42 mg/m3, respectively. The concentrations of dust within and between the sites were not different. Column casting, cut wire and steel rod and bundle, and sweep cleaning were the tasks that highly produced inhalable dust in low-rise building construction. PM2.5 was the most abundant, taking approximately 80% of RD. Respiratory symptoms, namely cough and phlegm, were answered by 150 workers. The lung impairment was found to be a restrictive pattern of 36 workers, followed by the obstructive pattern of 11 workers and a mixed ventilatory pattern of 2 workers. Males showed a range percent predicted FVC% of 54.28 – 132.28, FEV1% of 63.14 – 152.70, and FEV1/FVC% of 89.47–121.95, females showed a range percent predicted FVC% of 47.90 – 101.57, FEV1% of 58.74 – 111.51, and FEV1/FVC% of 97.73 – 126.58. Gender, age, education, employed year, smoking status, and wearing mask were significantly associated with respiratory symptoms at a p-value of 0.001, <0.001, 0.005, 0.004, 0.050, and <0.001, respectively. Age and education influenced respiratory symptoms at a p-value of 0.009 and 0.012. The workers aged 35 years and over had a risk of developing respiratory symptoms compared with those younger 4.50 times (95% CI: 1.45- 13.96). The workers who graduated the primary school had a risk of developing respiratory symptoms compared with those in higher education 5.73 times (95% CI: 1.47- 22.30). Education was the only factor that was significantly related to both respiratory symptoms and lung function. In this finding, the construction dust was irregular and loaded with chemical composition, and PM2.5 was highly produced. This supported the danger of construction dust that is harmful to health. Regarding prevention and protection of the worker's health, the measurement of construction dust should be concerned with PM2.5. This data could be beneficial for searching the appropriate management control for specific according to the nature of the dust, such as adding a well-ventilation and choosing a wet sweep to reduce dust spreading, choosing a suitable mask for the workers. Cough and phlegm could be observed as early signs to detect respiratory symptoms and screening before spirometry among construction workers. Training education should be implemented for the workers' awareness and self-protection of the impact on respiratory health.