Niveles de plomo en sangre y estado de salud de los trabajadores de la industria minera al sur de Ecuador

Abstract

The widespread use of lead has resulted in significant contamination in many parts of the world. Objective: To measure the association between blood lead levels and the negative effects on the health of workers (hematological alterations) in the mining industry in southern Ecuador. Method: Analytical, retrospective based on the study of existing laboratory results in the archive of the Occupational Medicine Center of the city of Loja, of a population made up of 1000 workers from mining companies located in southern Ecuador who have undergone occupational exams including hematic biometry and blood lead; Furthermore, sociodemographic factors are considered during the 2018-2020 period. And analytical statistics for the dependent and independent variables, blood lead levels and hematological alterations, for which average will be used, and standard deviation and Pearson's coefficient to determine if there is a correlation between variables. Results. Within these results, it is expected to find that of the 1000 workers that make up the total study population of mining companies located in southern Ecuador, the ages vary between 18 and 59 years, the majority corresponding to the male sex, mine workers, their degree of instruction varies between primary and secondary, a minimum number of workers present higher education, the average of 30 months approximately. The majority of workers are expected to be classified with values higher than 15 ug / dL. There is no significant correlation between lead levels and hematological alterations.