Infectious Disease Occurrence in Forestry Workers: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Forestry workers are a classic example of how environmental exposures put workers in some occupations at higher risk for infectious disease. Foresters are exposed to wild animals, arthropods, vegetation, and soil, all of which may harbor bacteria, viruses, fungi, or other eukaryotic parasites that are harmful to humans. Common routes of exposure to these pathogens include inhalation, direct contact, and vector-borne inoculation through the skin in injuries. A variety of vectors can transmit diseases of importance to foresters. They include ticks, flies, mosquitoes, and Reduviidae bugs. This is a systematic review of the scientific literature that details the risk forestry workers face.

Key Words:

• Infection
• forestry
• lyme disease
• hantavirus
• fungi
• sero-epidemiology