| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立陽明大學 === 環境與職業衛生研究所 === 100 === A large amount of organophosphate pesticides (OPs) is used
throughout Taiwan, and human may be exposed through dietary intake or residential use. Adolescent students are at a rapidly physical and sexual development period, they may be more susceptible to the
potentially adverse effects of pesticides than other age groups. Environmental chemicals may affect the growth and development in human, but the effects of OP upon adolescent are unknown. The aim of the present study was to assess the association between OPs exposure and secondary sexual development of adolescent students.
Adolescent students (N=293) aged from 10 to 14 years were recruited from northern, central, southern, and eastern Taiwan. Urine samples were collected and a structured questionnaire was also filled out by the subject to collect the demographic data. Urinary metabolite of organophosphate pesticides were assessed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The analytes included dimethylphosphate (DMP), dimethylthiophosphate (DMTP), dimethyldithiophosphate (DMDTP), diethylphosphate (DEP), diethylthiophosphate (DETP), and diethyldithiophosphate (DEDTP).
The highest occurrence of secondary sexual characteristic for boys was having pimples (57.3%), followed by pubic hair development (51.3%). The highest occurrence of secondary sexual characteristic for girls was breast development (88.7%), followed by having pimples (75.2%), and menarche (68.8%).The average age of menarche occurred at 11.5±1.0 years. We found that the detection rate of OP urinary metabolites for our subjects ranged from the lowest of 20% for DEDTP to the highest of 93% for DMTP and DEP . Regression analysis showed that risk factors of OP exposure included sex , urban , eating out frequency , fruits and vegetables purchase supermarkets.
Regression analysis showed a significantly association between OP exposure and facial hair development in boys, association between OP exposure and pubic hair development as well as menarche in girls. Since the common OPs exposure among Taiwanese, a large longitudinal study is warranted to examine the relationship between OP exposure and secondary sexual development for adolescent students .
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