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Cholinesterase research outreach project (CROP): point of care cholinesterase measurement in an Australian agricultural community

Overview of attention for article published in Environmental Health, April 2018
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Title
Cholinesterase research outreach project (CROP): point of care cholinesterase measurement in an Australian agricultural community
Published in
Environmental Health, April 2018
DOI 10.1186/s12940-018-0374-1
Pubmed ID
Authors

Jacqueline Cotton, John Edwards, Muhammad Aziz Rahman, Susan Brumby

Abstract

Australian farmers are routinely exposed to a wide variety of agrichemicals, including herbicides and insecticides. Organophosphate (OP) insecticides are widely used for agricultural production, horticulture and animal husbandry practices. Symptoms of OP toxicity are the results of inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) which is found in many types of conducting tissue in human bodies such as nerve and muscle, central and peripheral tissues, motor and sensory fibres. Cholinesterase can be measured in red blood cells/erythrocytes (AChE) and plasma (PChE). This study aims to explore integration of AChE monitoring into routine health checks for those at risk and also to examine any association between AChE activity and agrichemical use in a Victorian farming community in Australia. This was a prospective cohort study, where farmers and non-famers were compared on the levels of AChE at four time points of baseline, 3-4 weeks, 6-weeks and at 9-weeks. Study participants (N = 55) were residents from South West Victoria, aged between 18 and 75 years, spoke English, and had not had a previous known acute chemical accident. A total of 41 farming (had been farming for more than 5 years) and a convenience sample of 14 non-farming individuals met the inclusion criteria. Testing of AChE was repeated for all participants with a maximum of three times over 10 weeks. The integration of AChE monitoring was very well accepted by all participants. There was no significant difference in average AChE activity between farming and non-farming participants (one-way ANOVA p > 0.05) in this study. There was no significant difference between personal use of agricultural chemicals on farm and the levels of AChE at baseline (measurement 1) or any of the follow up periods (p > 0.05). However, the mean activity of AChE was significantly lower within follow up periods [F (2.633, 139.539) = 14.967, p < 0.001]. There was a significant reduction of AChE between the follow up at 3-weeks and 6-weeks period (p = 0.015). The routine monitoring of AChE may allow for early recognition of chronic low-level exposure to OPs when they are used by farmers, provided a reasonable estimate of baseline AChE is available. This work provides an evidence for recommending the integration of AChE monitoring into point of care (POC) procedures in rural health clinics and quantifying pesticide exposure and personal protection both on the farm and in the home. Farmer engagement is crucial to the successful integration of AChE monitoring into rural health clinics in Australia. ACTRN12613001256763 .

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The data shown below were collected from the profile of 1 X user who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 104 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 104 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 12 12%
Student > Bachelor 12 12%
Student > Master 11 11%
Researcher 6 6%
Student > Postgraduate 6 6%
Other 24 23%
Unknown 33 32%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Medicine and Dentistry 14 13%
Environmental Science 12 12%
Nursing and Health Professions 11 11%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 6 6%
Computer Science 5 5%
Other 19 18%
Unknown 37 36%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 02 April 2018.
All research outputs
#20,472,403
of 23,031,582 outputs
Outputs from Environmental Health
#1,358
of 1,507 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#290,413
of 328,940 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Environmental Health
#27
of 32 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 23,031,582 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,507 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 32.2. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 328,940 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 32 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.