نشریه طب کار
سال یازدهم شماره 4 (پیاپی 37، زمستان 1398)

today, musculoskeletal disorders are considered as a serious threat for workers, and one of the main activities, which lead to these problems, is lifting. Moreover, workers in printing industry are widely involved in inappropriate postures and lifting loads. The aim of this study was to compare the results of assessment of lifting tasks with KIM-LHC, WISHA and Snook tables in printing industry.

In this cross-sectional study, a total number of 58 employees (64 tasks in total) from a printing industry staff in Tehran were evaluated with three observational methods of KIM-LHC, WISHA and Snook tables, and the final scores and necessary action levels were determined for them. Furthermore, statistical data were analyzed by SPSS (ver.22) software using Chi-square and Fisher exact tests.

Results showed that the prevalence of lower limbs musculoskeletal discomforts was high. Comparing the results of load lifting assessment with WISHA and KIM-LHC methods showed that there was a significant relationship between these two methods (p=0.005). Moreover, there was a significant relationship between the results of assessment through the WISHA and Snook tables methods (p=0.006), and finally the comparison of load lifting assessment results with KIM-LHC and Snook tables showed a significant relationship between these two methods (p=0.046).

According to the results of this study, there was a high correlation between the results of these three methods, and they can be used as an alternative in printing industry for assessment of the load lifting task.

Emergency ward nurses exposed to occupational hazards. Job Safety Analysis (JSA) is a way to identify and assessment job-related risks and provide control strategies to reduce risks. The purpose of this study was to evaluate Job Safety Analysis and compare the effectiveness of control (engineering and management) interventions in emergency nursing.

This is an interventional study performed to assessment the risk by Job Safety Analysis (JSA) in three groups of nurses Triage، Group Leader and Trauma-Hospitalization hospital emergency department of Yazd Shahid Rahnamoon Hospital in 1397. First, the initial risk assessment code (pre-intervention) estimated, then the engineering and management controls implemented and the secondary risk assessment code (after intervention) calculated after three months.

According to the results of the study، risk of musculoskeletal disorders with risk score of 20, identified as the highest risk in all three emergency nursing groups، also mean risk assessment code for the occupational hazards in nurses calculated which were in the unacceptable risk range and reached an acceptable level after performing management and engineering interventions.

results of this study showed that the implementation of engineering and management interventions had a positive effect on reducing the mean risk assessment code، also shown that the risk assessment code for occupational hazards reduced to Almost the same amount with the implementation of each engineering and management intervention. This indicates the same role of these interventions in reducing the risk level.

Air quality in industrial workshops is affected by various harmful chemical agents. Purpose of this study was to compare work environment air quality in a number of industrial workshops based on the mass concentration and number of suspended particles in air and application of Kriging geostatistical method in industries.

This observational study was carried out in four workshops including cuprous waste separation works, rolling and cutting, casting and copper smelting, manufacturing aluminum products and double-glazed glass production. Using particle mass counter sampler of Tes 5200 model, mass concentration and number concentration of suspended particles in row of different diameters were measured. The spatial distribution map of PM2.5 and PM10 in each of workshops was prepared using Kriging geostatistic method in GIS environment Version 10.5.

The highest mass concentration (8.42 mg/m3) and number concentration (445058 Particle/lit in differential mode and 885446 Particle/lit in cumulative mode) were measured in the manufacturing aluminum products workshop. The highest mass concentration and number concentration of suspended particles were obtained for row diameters of 10 µm and 0.5 µm, respectively. Interpretation of Kriging maps showed that various areas of the industries such as radiation furnace, scrap press, aluminum smelter, sieve, diamond machine, glass furnace and ingot molds had the highest frequency of PM2.5 and PM10.

Engineering control actions such as installation of ventilation systems in halls and design and installation of a local hood in the entrance sections of the aluminum smelting furnace and sieve in manufacture of aluminum products workshop and copper ingot molds in casting and smelting workshop is essential for improved air quality.

In recent decades, scientific growth has led to industrial progress and increased welfare for humans. But there are other unintended consequences, including work-related accidents. The incidence of occupational accidents in the various countries of the world, especially in the industrial sector, is increasing over time. So that occupational accidents are one of the most important problems in developing countries today. Thus, the purpose of this study was to compare the organizational commitment, job stress, and personality traits of injured and non-injured employees in Isfahan Refinery Company.

The research method is descriptive and in terms of comparative causal research, the statistical population of the study was 420 people and the number of unfortunate incidents in the number of 238 people in the autumn of 1397-39, totally 658 people, among whom A total of 100 poeple were selected via convenience sampling in two groups of 50. In this research Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (Ellen & Miller, 1990), Job Stress Questionnaire (Lambert et al., 2007), Personality Characteristics Questionnaire (McCrae &, 2004) were used.

The data were analyzed by using multivariate and one-variable variance analysis. The results of multivariate analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference between the two groups of injured and non-injured employees in the job stress and affective commitment, but their differences in normative and continuance commitment and personality traits were not significant.

According to the findings of this study, it can be concluded that workplace accidents could be decreased through increasing of affective commitment and decreasing of job stress. Therefore, the need to pay attention to these factors should be considered by policymakers, scientists and practitioners.

Estimation of the maximum aerobic capacity to find a physiological fitness between worker and the work is of great importance. The purpose of this study was to estimate the highest aerobic capacity and physical work capacity of tile and ceramic workers.

In this cross-sectional study, 90 workers were randomly selected from tile and ceramic workers in Yazd. A questionnaire consisting of two parts was used as data collection tool. The first part of the questionnaire included demographic characteristics completed by the interview. In the second part, parameters including height, weight, BMI and heart rate were inserted in the questionnaire. The Queen step test was used to measure the maximum aerobic capacity. The data were analyzed by SPSS software using Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests and Spearman,s test.

The maximum aerobic capacity in tile and ceramic workers was estimated to be 3.60±.0.03 L/m. The results showed that aerobic capacity was significantly correlated with weight and body mass index. Also, there was no significant relationship between aerobic capacity, smoking and exercise, and education, but there was a significant relationship between gob title and aerobic capacity.

Weight, BMI and type of occupation affect the aerobic capacity of workers.

Occupational injuries can impose a significant cost to the country’s economy. In developing countries, it is usually difficult to get access to occupational injuries data mainly because the lack of appropriate reporting and recording system, and in these countries, making it difficult to accurately estimate the costs of these injuries. The purpose of this study is to estimate the  direct and indirect costs of occupational injuries in one of the Iranian refining industries.

This cross-sectional study was performed on all occupational injuries, including outpatient injuries to deaths in 2015. Data was collected based on a bottom-up approach, by using the recorded documents and a researcher-made questionnaire. Lastly the direct and indirect costs for different stockholders, including workers and their families, industry and society as a whole, were calculated. Investigated direct costs of occupational injuries included The healthcare costs, out of pocket cost and informal caregiving and Indirect costs included productivity losses, reorganization and investigation costs and home production costs.

 It is estimated that occupational injuries impose 103,385 million Rials to the society over a year. Investigated direct costs of occupational injuries imposed 14,152 million Rials (48 million Rials per case). Indirect costs imposed 89,232 million Rials to the society (308 million Rials per case). Also the average healthcare cost per case for fatal injuries is estimate 125 million, for serious injuries 12 million Rials and for outpatient injuries 780,000 Rials

 According to the results of the study, occupational injuries annually bring significant economic costs to the industry, workers and their families which a significant portion of these costs are indirect costs. These results indicates the status and importance of occupational injuries and therefore can be used by decision-makers and planners in occupational health-related issues.

Workload can be defined as the hypothetical construct that represents the cost incurred by a human operator to achieve a particular level of performance. Several methods have been used to assess the workload. One of the most common methods of assessing mental workload is NASA-TLX method. The present study was conducted to develop and validate of a pilot activity load index (PALI) based on NASA-TLX template.

This study was a cross-sectional and descriptive-analytical that was carried out among airline pilots of Civil Aviation Organization. At first, “Pilot Activity Load Index” or PALI subscales were developed based on NASA-TLX template. Validity of the subscales was evaluated by Content Validity Ratio (CVR) and Content Validity Index (CVI).Using Lawshe’s table. Finally, to determine the internal consistency of the subscales, 30 pilots completed the final version of the PALI in typical flight phases. The data obtained were then analyzed by SPSS using Cronbach's alpha to measure the reliability of the subscales and considering an acceptance level of 0.7.

The first results led to the emergence of an initial list with 17 subscales. Eleven subscales were irrelevant, redundant and impractical to use in operational environment, due to CVR less than 0.75 and were omitted from the subscales list. Finally, six PALI subscales were approved related to pilot tasks (CVI=0.79). The Verified subscales had a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.89 and were therefore considered a reliable tool.

 The results of this study showed that PALI questionnaire which validity and reliability has been approved can be used for assessment of workload in pilots.

Due to the spread of the new coronavirus around the world, workplaces are not safe against this disease. Different guidelines have been promoted by international organizations regarding high-risk jobs and the necessity of implementing health rules in the workplaces. According to the considerable number of incidence of this disease in our country, the aim of this review article is to evaluate the epidemiologic studies on prevention and control of new coronavirus in the workplaces.

In this study, with the aim of evaluating occupational risk factors for new coronavirus infection, different databases such as Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar from 2019 to 2020 and CDC, NIOSH, OSHA, and WHO instructions were evaluated. 18 articles and 5 instructions were selected for this review article.

Investigations revealed that most of occupations such as healthcare workers, waste workers, and public transportation staff are at increased risk of this disease.

All members of the society including employers, employees and laborers should be completely ready to overcome the virus, even if the epidemic has not been spreading in that country or area. This point can be effective on the reduction of lost workdays, work absenteeism and prevent the spread of the virus in the community.