Total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) in wood based manufacturers in Shah Alam area and the associated health effects / Nuriz'zati Nadia Zulkifli

Purpose: To determine Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOCs) in wood based manufacturers and the associated health effects.
Method: Sample taken at each factory in Shah Alam area in accordance to the Industry Code of Practice in Indoor Air Quality 2010. The study design used was Cross- sectional study. The sampling method for Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOCs) used direct measurement with Gas Alert Micro 5 PID and method for lung function will be based on standard operation procedure (SOP) developed by Environmental Health and Safety of UiTM and adopted to meet criteria from "ATS/ERS" series task Force: Standardisation of Lung Function Testing.The Questionnaire (adapted from European community respiratory health survey II) were distributed to workers of wood based industry (n=24).
Result: This cross- sectional study was conducted in Shah Alam area in wood based manufacturing factories (n=8) where micro-environmental sampling was conducted for total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) with 0.13 ± 0.179ppm. Air flow was measured in each factories (n=8) and found that air flow within acceptable range 0.275 ± 0.281 ms-¹. Lung function performance analysis among workers (n=24) had the following results: FVC=2.75±1.105L, FEV1=2.56±1.08L and EV1/FVC=0.88±0.22L. Inferential analysis showed a weak correlation with lung function among workers for TVOCs with a weak association for lung function performance (r=-0.448) with a p-value=0.028 (p<0.05). The non parametric chi square analysis showed a result for symptoms of illness with excessive dusts a X² value 4.167 and a p-value=0.04 with a significant level of p<0.05. A survey was conducted among workers (n=24) in the study fectories where it was found that (n=10, 46%) were not wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
Conclusion: As an outcome of this study, Total Volatile Organic compounds (TVOCs) was identified as a factor that contributed to the lung function performance among workers. This research requires further studies and may be baseline information in future