Increased risk of atherosclerosis associated with pesticide exposure in rural areas in Korea

Atherosclerosis is a progressive inflammation in systemic vessels, and pesticide exposure has been emerging as its risk factor. This cross-sectional study investigated the association between pesticide exposure and the risk of atherosclerosis in a rural population in Korea using carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT). This study used dataset from the baseline survey of the Korea Farmers Cohort Study between November 2005 and January 2008, and the final analysis included 477 participants. Well-structured questionnaires were used to estimate pesticide exposure. CIMT ≥ 0.9 mm was established for carotid atherosclerosis. Multiple logistic regression analyses were undertaken to evaluate the association between pesticide exposure and atherosclerosis, adjusting demographic and health-related confounders. Even after adjustments, the increased risk of atherosclerosis was significantly associated with pesticide exposure, such as a lifetime history of farming (odds ratio [OR] 3.25 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.51–6.98), a history of using pesticide (OR 3.42 95% CI 1.63–7.16), using pesticide 10 times or more annually (OR 2.55 95% CI 1.21–5.39), and higher cumulative exposure index level (OR 3.63 95% CI 1.65–7.97). Further prospective studies are required to elucidate effects of pesticide exposure on the risk of atherosclerosis.