Pesticides

The N.C. Pesticide Illness and Injury Surveillance Program

What is surveillance?

Public Health Surveillance involves collecting information about a health problem you are concerned about; analyzing the information to determine who is affected most, where and why; and then making recommendations that will help prevent the problem from happening. The information gathered is also used by state and federal agencies and other groups to make decisions about enforcement of laws, training needs, medical care, resource allocation and research priorities.

How does the program work?

Pesticide use has become commonplace in homes, schools, businesses, and especially in agriculture. But while pesticide use has many benefits, it also has risks if products are not used as directed. Exposure can result in acute illness or injury, and there is increasing evidence that exposure to pesticides may also cause chronic health effects.

Current data indicate that many pesticide-related poisonings occur each year in North Carolina . According to Carolinas Poison Center, North Carolina experiences more than 2,000 cases of pesticide poisonings a year, with mostly non-occupational cases reported. American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) data indicate that pesticides are among the substances most frequently involved in adult and pediatric exposures.

In North Carolina, farmworkers and their families are most at risk for illness and injury from pesticide exposures. This is related to the fact that most pesticides are used in agriculture and North Carolina is a prominent agricultural state, generating significant income from agriculture, and using significant amounts of pesticides compared to other states. North Carolina also has large farmworker and migrant farmworker populations compared to other states. Family members of agricultural workers are also at risk of direct or indirect pesticide exposure as many live in close proximity to fields, participate in farming activities, or come in contact with take-home residues.

Because of concerns regarding potential toxicity, pesticide usage, and vulnerable groups, the N.C. Division of Public Health determined that a closer monitoring of pesticides is warranted and will be accomplished through a pesticide-related illness and injury surveillance program.

Surveillance will allow the state to properly track and respond to reports of pesticide illness and injury. The information obtained will be used to develop strategies to prevent over-exposure. Several sources of reporting have been established, including physicians (see mandatory reporting rule), Carolinas Poison Center, and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Once a report is received, information on exposure prevention will be shared with the affected person and the case will be investigated. Data collected will be analyzed by Public Health officials, and important findings will be posted on our website and shared with outside agencies and groups. Public Health will also identify the issues that most affect residents and workers so that appropriate prevention activities can be developed.