Doença de Parkinson e sua relação com a exposição a agrotóxicos em usuários de um serviço público de saúde na região oeste do Paraná

Abstract

Pesticides are a multiple chemical substances complex used to kill, exterminate and combat pests. They represent a potential risk to all living organisms given their toxicity. Among the several effects on human health stands out the relationship with Parkinson's disease. Thus, the general objective of the study was to analyze the association between exposure to pesticide and the development of Parkinson’s disease in users of the Brazil´s Unified Public Health System accompanied by the neurology clinic service of the Hospital Universitário do Oeste do Paraná in Cascavel, Paraná. It is an exploratory, descriptive and explanatory research with a cross-sectional design, using quantitative and qualitative data. The first part of this research was made at neurology clinic service of hospital, through data collection in medical records using TASY® system and Medical Files and Statistics Service to identify individuals diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease that used the service in the last 5 years. The second part of this research was developed trough a telephone interview questionnaire made of open and closed questions to characterize the subjects of the study, history of Parkinson's disease, employment history and exposure to pesticides. The search in the service systems resulted in 507 patients attended at the neurology clinic Service, of which 48 (9.47%) had Parkinson's disease, and 32 (66.67%) comprised the sample. The age group was 60 years or more in 87.48% of the cases, highlighting the homogeneity of genders. According to school degree, 9.39% had never attended school and 43.74% had studied less than 4 years; 62.50% currently resides in Cascavel; 87.48% affirmed they did not have any Parkinson´s disease cases in family. In relation to the labor activity performed by the subjects during life, 78.11% worked in agriculture and 57.14% lived in rural areas from 11 to 30 years; 74.98% of them had contact with pesticides, 50% contact was direct; only 25% of the subjects who reported direct contact with the pesticide used personal protective equipment, in general, boot and mask. Regarding the time elapsed between exposure to pesticides and the onset of Parkinson's disease symptoms, 75% reported a time greater than 20 years. Sixteen different types of pesticides were mentioned, calling attention to hexachlorobenzene in 31.25% of the cases, glyphosate 31.25% and paraquat 12.50%. Of the pesticides mentioned 25% are banned in the Country: hexachlorobenzene, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane, methyl parathion and methamidophos. The results show that the exposure to pesticides can contribute to the illness of individuals, and the relation with Parkinson's disease can not be ruled out.