Evaluation of Some Pulmonary Functions among Morticians in Teaching and General Hospitals Exposed to Formaldehyde in Benin City, Nigeria

Abstract

Formaldehyde is the key chemical substance used by morticians to prevent known post-mortem changes. Hence, the objective of this paper is to evaluate some pulmonary functions among morticians in Teaching and General Hospitals exposed to formaldehyde in Benin City, Nigeria using appropriate standard methods. Results revealed significant increase in respiratory rate and significant decrease in forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁)_{, FEV1}/FVC ratio, peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR), and forced expiratory flow between 25 and 75 percent (FEF₂₅₇₅) among morticians of the Teaching hospital and General hospital when compared to the control while those of the General hospital morticians were found to be lower than those of the Teaching hospital morticians. It was therefore concluded that exposure to formaldehyde has deleterious effects on the respiratory health of morticians especially those in the General hospital hence, there is an urgent need to seek ways of reducing formaldehyde air levels in our mortuaries especially the General hospital mortuary in order to protect the respiratory health of the morticians.