The Study of Pulmonary, Renal and Hepatic Status in Door and Window Welders in Rafsanjan in 2018: A Short Report

Exposure to welding gases can cause problems and illnesses. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the pulmonary, renal and hepatic status of welders in Rafsanjan city.

This descriptive study was carried out on 78 welders in Rafsanjan city in 2018. To examine the pulmonary, renal and hepatic status of welders, besides using a checklist, a total of 43 participants got laboratory tests, and the results were reported as descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, number and percent).

According to the checklist data, 17 (21.8%) of welders had at least one respiratory problem, 10 (12.8%) of welders had kidney disease, and one of them had liver disease. Also, aspartate aminotransferase of 2 participants (4.6%) and alanine aminotransferase 7 participants (16.2%) were higher than normal. 6 participants (35.3%) from those who had respiratory problems and 30 participants (35.3%) from those who had not respiratory problems reported using mask.

According to the results, welders' use of mask seems to be effective in reducing respiratory problems, although this finding was not statistically significant.