occupational health and safety alberta
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- The Mozilla Project has released Firefox 3.0.5 and 2.0.0.19 and SeaMonkey 1.1.14 to fix various security bugs.
The Mozilla Project has released Firefox 3.0.5 and 2.0.0.19 and SeaMonkey 1.1.14 to fix various security bugs. All users should upgrade. More...
- Hearing loss among Ohio farm youth: A comparison to a national sample
Hearing loss is prevalent among adults in the farming community, with some evidence it begins in childhood. Our objective was to compare hearing thresholds of Ohio farm youth to published data on national norms.Baseline data were collected on youth (n = 212) in 1994-1996 with follow-up (n = 132) in 2003-2004 including pure-tone air conduction thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 kHz.When compared to nationally-representative data, study youth had a higher prevalence of hearing loss. The high-frequency range was most affected, particularly at 6 kHz where nearly 50% of the farm youth exhibited some degree of hearing loss at baseline testing. The prevalence of noise-induced threshold shifts, characterized by an audiometric notch, was nearly twice that of the national sample.These data suggest that hearing loss, which is common among adult farmers, may be problematic for farm youth as well. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Epistaxis in a low level hydrogen fluoride exposed industrial staff
To assess the effect of exposure to hydrogen fluoride (HF) on the airway mucosa in an industrial setting.A cross-sectional study encompassing 33 industrial workers in a flame soldering plant and 44 assembly workers unexposed to HF was performed by means of a questionnaire on symptoms and diagnosis regarding upper and lower airways as well as through conduct of a clinical examination of the exposed group. Air concentrations of HF that were monitored in winter amounted to 1.0 mg/m3 and in summer time to 0.15 mg/m3.A threefold risk for epistaxis (RR = 3.6, 95% confidence interval 1.1-11.0) was observed in the exposed group. Time from the start of exposure to HF until debut of a nose bleeding period varied from 1 month to 6 years. Mean induction (latency) time was 42 months. Mean duration of symptoms was 26 months, range 3-72 months, indicating that the exposure level in summer time was sufficient to maintain the propensity of almost daily nose bleeding.HF is an irritating vapor, even at relatively low air concentrations. We recommend an 8 hr TLV lower than 1.0 mg/m3. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Prevalence of common mental disorders and their work consequences in france, according to occupational category
In the previously published version of this article Marcel Goldberg name was misspelled within the authorship as Marcel Gorldberg. The corrected version, Marcel Goldberg, appears above to amend the record. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Identification of occupational cancer risk in British Columbia: A population-based case-control study of 2,998 lung cancers by histopathological subtype
Few studies have investigated occupational lung cancer risk in relation to specific histopathological subtypes.A case-control study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between lung cancer and occupation/industry of employment by histopathological subtype. A total of 2,998 male cases and 10,223 cancer controls, diagnosed between 1983 and 1990, were identified through the British Columbia Cancer Registry. Matched on age and year of diagnosis, conditional logistic regression analyses were performed for two different estimates of exposure with adjustment for potentially important confounding variables, including tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, marital status, educational attainment, and questionnaire respondent.For all lung cancers, an excess risk was observed for workers in the primary metal (OR = 1.31, 95% CI, 1.01-1.71), mining (OR = 1.53, 95% CI, 1.20-1.96), machining (OR = 1.33, 95% CI, 1.09-1.63), transport (OR = 1.50, 95% CI, 1.08-2.07), utility (OR = 1.60, 95% CI, 1.22-2.09), and protective services (OR = 1.27, 95% CI, 1.05-1.55) industries. Associations with histopathological subtypes included an increased risk of squamous cell carcinoma in construction trades (OR = 1.25, 95% CI, 1.06-1.48), adenocarcinoma for professional workers in medicine and health (OR = 1.73, 95% CI, 1.18-2.53), small cell carcinoma in railway (OR = 1.62, 95% CI, 1.06-2.49), and truck transport industries (OR = 1.51, 95% CI, 1.00-2.28), and large cell carcinoma for employment in the primary metal industry (OR = 2.35, 95% CI, 1.11-4.96).Our results point to excess lung cancer risk for occupations involving exposure to metals, polyaromatic hydrocarbons and asbestos, as well as several new histopathologic-specific associations that merit further investigation. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - The relationship between chronic rhinosinusitis and occupation: The 1998, 2001, and 2005 Korea National health and nutrition examination survey (KNHANES)
We examined the relationship between chronic rhinosinusitis and occupation.We analyzed data from the 1998, 2001, and 2005 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). Men and women aged 20-59 who participated in the three KNHANES were included to analyze the relationship between chronic rhinosinusitis and occupation. Trained interviewers visited subjects' homes and administered a standardized questionnaire on diagnosed diseases. Subjects were asked if they had experienced chronic rhinosinusitis during the previous year or had had rhinosinusitis for three or more consecutive months. Occupational classification followed the major groups of the Korean Standard Classification of Occupations (KSCO). We calculated the prevalence ratios (PRs) of chronic rhinosinusitis by major groups compared with clerical workers in the three KNHANES. Poisson regression with robust standard error was conducted, adjusting for age in 10-year strata.There were significantly increased PRs of chronic rhinosinusitis in plant and machinery operators and assemblers, elementary occupations, crafts and related trade workers, and the unemployed.These results support the relationship between chronic rhinosinusitis and occupational exposure at the macro level. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Musculoskeletal pain in women working in small-scale agriculture in South Africa
Musculoskeletal pain is associated with demographic, occupational and physical factors.Our study investigated the prevalence and factors associated with musculoskeletal pain in 911 women working in small-scale agriculture in rural northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa in 2006 using a questionnaire survey.In total, 67% (n = 574) of women reported any chronic musculoskeletal pain. The 12-month prevalence of pain ranged from 63.9% to 73.3% and the prevalence of specific chronic pain lasting more than 3 months ranged from 42.8% to 48.3%. Older age, carrying heavy loads, working with hands above shoulder height, and frequently squatting and kneeling were associated with chronic musculoskeletal pain.The prevalence of pain reported in our study, was similar to other developing countries, but considerably higher than in developed countries. Ergonomic interventions including improved and adapted work techniques and tools should be considered to reduce the prevalence of pain in our study population. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2009. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Salivary cortisol and psychosocial hazards at work
Experimental and clinical evidence suggest that stress can lead to ill-health through the disregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Studies to date have produced equivocal results likely due to different methodologies and failure to account for confounding factors. This investigation aimed to assess the relation between self-reported work-related stressors and salivary cortisol and to clarify the role of the potential confounders.Thirty-six call-handlers completed a self-administered job content questionnaire and collected seven daily salivary samples on two workdays and a weekend. The diurnal salivary cortisol output was expressed as cortisol awakening response (CAR), and cortisol output in the rest of the day. Salivary cortisol data were normalized by means of square root transformation. The generalized estimating equations method was used to assess the relation between job strain and cortisol levels after adjusting for gender, weekdays and adherence to the sampling schedule.Job strain significantly influenced the total amount of cortisol response to waking (high strain vs. low strain: 1.1 (0.3-2.0) nmol/L). The cortisol response to waking showed gender-specific differences [women excreting greater cortisol than men: 1.1 (0.3-1.9) nmol/L], and weekday differences [workdays vs. weekend: 1.0 (0.3-1.6) nmol/L]. Non-compliance with the sampling protocol was associated with lower salivary cortisol than in adherent subjects.Our results provide further evidence for the HPA axis involvement in the physiological response to work stress. The measure of the CAR showed to be the sensitive index to assess the physiological response to psychosocial factors. Gender, weekday, and protocol compliance were confounding factors. Am. J. Ind. Med. В© 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. - Upper extremity pain and computer use among engineering graduate students: A replication study
Recent literature identified upper extremity musculoskeletal symptoms at a prevalence of >40% in college populations. The study objectives were to determine weekly computer use an