Evaluation of serum biomarkers to assess health status in urban traffic police personnel

Traffic police personnel face multiple occupational hazards as they are continuously exposed to vehicular emissions and work in a noisy, polluted environment. The objective of the present study is to explore the impact of air pollution on health of traffic police, by evaluation of serum biomarkers. The study population included 200 traffic police who worked outdoor on roads with heavy flow of vehicles and who were exposed to pollutants. 50 age and sex matched healthy subjects who worked indoor were considered as controls. Further, the traffic police group was subdivided into 4 groups based on the number of years of their exposure to urban pollutants. Group I included subjects with less than 5 years of exposure, Group II 6 to 10 years, Group III 11 to 20 years and group IV more than 20 years. Biochemical parameters like glucose, cholesterol, bilirubin and other markers of liver function and renal function were estimated in fasting blood samples using spectrophotometric methods. 37% of the traffic police were pre-diabetic and 10% were diabetic. Hypercholesterolemia in police strongly suggest the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Significantly elevated total bilirubin, direct and indirect bilirubin levels in police indicate the prevalence of sub clinical jaundice. Further, increased serum transaminases demonstrate mild hepatocellular damage. Albumin globulin ratio decreased with the increase in duration of exposure to pollution within the police sub groups. Markedly high urea may be a sign of renal dysfunction in police personnel. Uric acid, the latest marker of pre-diabetes and insulin resistance, increased steadily from group I to IV along with glucose. The current study emphasizes the need for regular health checkups and create awareness regarding early diagnosis of organ dysfunction by investigation of biomarkers in police personnel.