Health conditions and occupational risks in a novel group: waste pickers in the largest open garbage dump in Latin America.

Background: The inadequate management of solid waste impacts populations' health and quality of life, and disproportionately affects developing countries. This study aims to describe a protocol for epidemiological diagnosis, the purpose being to estimate the prevalence of chronic and communicable and non communicable diseases in waste pickers, and the occupational and environmental risk factors to which these are exposed.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study, based on survey design in an area of extreme social vulnerability - the largest garbage dump in Latin America.