Abstract
BACKGROUND: To investigate the effects of aerosol size and concentration in pigeon lofts on the lung function of pigeon feeders. METHODS: From January 2022 to February 2022, 135 pigeon-feeders randomly selected from four villages in Turpan City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region were included in the exposure group, and 135 healthy medical check-ups from the same villages who had not been exposed to pigeons were included in the control group, and were questioned in detail to record the relevant information about the study subjects, to complete the pulmonary function examination, and to examine the concentration and size of aerosols in the surroundings, to analyze the effects of different concentrations and sizes of pigeon house aerosols on the lung function of the pigeon-feeders. The effects of different concentrations and sizes of pigeon loft aerosols on the lung function (FEV1, FVC, FEV1%, FVC%, FEV1/FVC) of the pigeon breeders were analyzed, and the correlation between the lung function and the number of years of keeping pigeons, the number of pigeons kept, and the time of daily exposure were analyzed. RESULTS: The aerosol concentration in the pigeon lofts of the exposed group was higher than that of the control group. Comparing the lung function of the exposed group with that of the control group, it was found that the lung function indexes of FVC, FEV1% and FVC% were lower than those of the control group, the aerosol concentration was negatively correlated with the lung function indexes of FEV1, FVC, FEV1%, FVC%, FEV1/FVC, the daily contact time with pigeons was negatively correlated with lung function indices, the number of years of keeping pigeons was negatively correlated with FEV1, and the difference was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The higher the aerosol concentration in the pigeon lofts, the longer the years of keeping, the longer the daily contact time with pigeons, the more pronounced is the decrease of the lung function indices in pigeon feeders.