Dermatitis in Greenhouse Farmers Caused by Acaricide Cyflumetofen – An Interview Study

Abstract

Pesticides are essentially toxic to living things, and, as they are used openly, it is necessary to monitor them and to prevent their adverse effects. A self-administered questionnaire survey given to a group of the greenhouse farmers told us that some of them developed dermatitis from acaricide cyflumetofen, so we conducted an interview study on dermatitis caused by cyflumetofen. The participants were affiliated with a strawberry producing group, and were interviewed at their annual health checkups in the spring of 2016 and 2017. The questions covered the status of spraying, dermatitis from cyflumetofen, and visitations to clinics/hospitals. Of 108 farmers interviewed, 20 had subjective symptoms of dermatitis from cyflumetofen. Seven of them had visited clinics/hospitals. The most affected body part was the face, especially around the eyes, followed by the hands and forearms. The subjective symptoms varied from slight (rubor and itching) to serious (swelling with aching around the eyes). Three male farmers had visited clinics/hospitals for 3-4 weeks, and had stopped using cyflumetofen. We advised them to continue avoiding the use of cyflumetofen, considering the results of an animal test: a “pesticide abstract” stated that cyflumetofen had caused skin sensitization in guinea pigs. It is necessary, therefore, to mention this skin sensitization in the safety datasheet of cyflumetofen.