This study was conducted across the 2016 to 2017 sugarcane harvest in a population of 105 field workers employed by Pantaleon, a sugarcane agribusiness in Guatemala. The sugarcane harvest season runs from November until May each year. A detailed description of the field setting has been described by Butler-Dawson et al.33 (link)In this longitudinal study, we prospectively assessed cross-shift changes in eGFR, biomarkers of renal function, and biomarkers of heat stress in 105 workers at three separate time points during the harvest season. Additionally, we collected clinical, environmental, occupational, and non-occupational data for each worker. Prior to each harvest, field workers undergo a fitness-for-work medical screening and health risk assessment survey. The screening evaluation includes clinical data (age, height, weight, blood pressure, heart rate), demographic information (location of home of residence, occupational history, lifestyle behaviors), and evaluation of eGFR via serum creatinine.
Workers were recruited for employment from local communities in the coastal area near the sugarcane fields (approximate altitude 350 m) as well as from highland communities of Guatemala (approximate altitude 1800 m). Workers were hired if they passed the fitness-for-work screening and had an eGFR greater than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Once hired, workers were assigned to work cohorts of approximately 50 workers each that remained constant for the duration of the season. The University of Colorado Center for Health, Work & Environment (CHWE) and Pantaleon executed a memorandum of understanding in 2016, with the shared goal of assessing and improving the health, safety, and well-being of the workers. Data from the pre-harvest medical screenings were provided to the research team at the CHWE. Ethics review and approval for this study was granted by the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board (COMIRB) and in Guatemala by the Comite de Etica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Francisco Marroquin-Hospital Universitario Esperanza.
Workers were recruited for employment from local communities in the coastal area near the sugarcane fields (approximate altitude 350 m) as well as from highland communities of Guatemala (approximate altitude 1800 m). Workers were hired if they passed the fitness-for-work screening and had an eGFR greater than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Once hired, workers were assigned to work cohorts of approximately 50 workers each that remained constant for the duration of the season. The University of Colorado Center for Health, Work & Environment (CHWE) and Pantaleon executed a memorandum of understanding in 2016, with the shared goal of assessing and improving the health, safety, and well-being of the workers. Data from the pre-harvest medical screenings were provided to the research team at the CHWE. Ethics review and approval for this study was granted by the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board (COMIRB) and in Guatemala by the Comite de Etica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Francisco Marroquin-Hospital Universitario Esperanza.
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