Occupational Diseases Research Articles

Fatalism Scale for Occupational Accidents and Diseases: A Scale Development Study

It is important to determine the attitudes of employees towards occupational accidents and diseases and whether these events are perceived as inevitable or out of control. Inaccurate interpretation of the perception of fatalism towards occupational accidents and diseases may lead to more occupational accidents and diseases. The use of scales to determine the perception of fatalism in the context of occupational accidents and diseases allows for a quantitative assessment of these issues. This approach makes it possible to objectively measure and analyze the perception of fatalism, thus paving the way for a more in-depth examination of related phenomena. This study is a scale development study to determine the level of fatalism towards occupational accidents and diseases. This methodological study was conducted between October 2021 and June 2023. The scale was shaped by taking expert opinions for the scale items prepared by making use of the literature, pre-applied and pilot applied with 75 people; Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were conducted with 242 people; and all evaluated with validity and reliability analyzes. In the exploratory factor analysis for the developed scale of fatalism towards occupational accidents and diseases, it was seen that the scale items were gathered under 4 factors and the explanatory coefficient was 53.68%. In order to measure the applicability of exploratory factor analysis for the scale, KMO value was 0.854 and Bartlett's Test of Sphericity value was χ2=1996.527; df=153, p

Research on Occupational Risk Assessment for Welder Occupation in Romania

The ever-increasing needs of the working population have led to the development of various branches of industry, an increase in the number of employees, and a rise in the number of work-related accidents. The welder occupation is one of the most sought after occupations in Europe, according to the EURopean Employment Services (EURES) statistics. Taking into account the work system in which welders conduct their activity (uncomfortable working positions, splashes, high temperatures, mechanical factors, gases and fumes, magnetic fields due to electric current), the paper presents the risk factors identified for the welder occupation, based on the occupational injury and illness risk assessments. Following the analysis of 25 risk assessments, carried out by the assessment team that must include qualified evaluators, process specialists, the workers’ representative, occupational health and safety responsible at various industrial economic agents, a total of 70 main risk factors of occupational accidents and diseases were identified for the welder occupation. Risk factors were classified according to four main work components: worker, workload, work environment, and means of production. To reflect the importance of the identified risk factor, the number of organizations that considered that the risk was likely to occur but also the possibility that the risk was above the acceptable limit, calculated using the National Institute for Research and Development for Labor Protection “Alexandru Darabont” (INCDPM) method, a method often used in Romania, was identified from the analyzed assessments. Finally, a prevention and protection plan was drawn up with regard to the risks identified for the welder occupation, the final aim of which was to respectively reduce the probability of occurrence with the severity of the risks identified.

Low Proportion of COVID-19 as an Occupational Disease among Tertiary Hospital Employees in Thailand

Objective: To examine the proportion of COVID-19 cases classified as an occupational disease and characterize COVID-19 among tertiary hospital employees (HEs) in Thailand. Materials and Methods: The present study was a retrospective descriptive study conducted between April 2021 and January 2022. Secondary data were obtained from electronic health records. In contrast, information on surveillance procedures was obtained from the hospital’s Occupational Health and Safety Management unit. The present study population included 115 HEs. Results: The proportion of COVID-19 cases classified as occupational diseases was 2.6% (3 out of 115). The most common sources of infection were household members at 40.0%, social events at 23.5%, and co-workers at 11.3%. If all healthcare employees were at risk, the estimated prevalence of COVID-19 during that period would be 115 out of 7,280, equivalent to 1.6 per 100 personnel. Among the infected HEs, more than half, or 55.7%, of the study population were frontline HEs. Most cases, or 41.7%, received a single booster vaccine and 76.9% had mild symptoms. None of the severe cases were immunized. Conclusion: The present study revealed a low proportion, at 2.6% of COVID-19 cases among HEs classified as occupational diseases. Their work activities contributed the least of causation. This may be due to effective strategies for hospital worker protection.

The Digital Economy and Hybrid Work Call for a Review of Compensation Criteria for Musculoskeletal Disorders.

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSD) pose a significant occupational health challenge in Europe. The digitization of the economy substantially reshaped the nature and organization of work. The proliferation of hybrid working, characterized by a combination of office-based and remote work, has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This review covers hybrid forms of work, their impact on WRMSDs, and the potential implications for WRMSD compensation. Approximately 30-40% of the European workforce could potentially transition to hybrid forms of work. Hybrid work arrangements can result in prolonged static postures of the trunk, neck, and upper limbs without adequate breaks, thereby increasing the risk of neck and lower back pain. As teleworking and hybrid working become more prevalent, an increase in non-specific WRMSDs is anticipated among the working population. In many countries, claims for WRMSDs necessitate a formal diagnosis by a healthcare professional. However, cases of non-specific WRMSDs, such as cervicalgia or chronic shoulder pain, - commonly observed in sedentary workers engaged in predominantly low-intensity, prolonged static work amid visually and cognitively demanding tasks - often do not meet the criteria for compensation as occupational diseases. The compensation system and/or the criteria for compensation must be adapted to accommodate the rise of telework, necessitating evolving criteria for compensation that address both medical and risk exposure considerations.

The Role of Work and Occupational Factors in the Development of Pulmonary Thromboembolism

PTE usually occurs as a complication of DVT. VTE develops through the interaction of individual risk factors and environmental factors. Occupational Diseases are diseases in which a work-specific cause-effect, effect-reaction relationship can be demonstrated. Work-related diseases are diseases in which many causal factors and other risk factors that exist in the workplace play a role. In fact, occupational and environmental risks also play a role in the formation of PTE, but research on this subject is quite limited. In PTE patients, occupational history and work conditions should be learned thoroughly in the anamnesis. People with a history of PTE should be enabled to work without being exposed to the risks that may cause or increase PTE during starting and returning to work. For this reason, while researching, we investigated the work and occupational reasons that may cause PTE and VTE. Relevant literatures were reviewed. Although there is not enough research, the literature we found shows that air pollution and exhaust emissions, working at high altitudes, long-term inactivity of drivers, pilots, and desk workers, chemicals exposed at work, and Covid-19 infection may be work-related reasons that can increase the risk of PTE and DVT. As a result, research and case reports on the subject are few and insufficient. For this, new research and case reports are needed. In cases, occupational exposure history should be well learned and its relationship with PTE or VTE should be thoroughly investigated. In order to prevent new PTE cases that may occur, occupational PTE cases should be reported and necessary precautions should be taken.

Отруєння фосфором як професійне та екологічно обумовлене захворювання в умовах війни у світлі рекомендацій Міжнародної організації праці 2022 року

Abstract. The issue of diagnosis, registration and monitoring of diseases related to phosphorus poisoning is extremely important, taking into account Russia’s use of phosphorous ammunition on the territory of Ukraine. The system of recognition and monitoring of occupational and environmentally determined diseases needs to be adapted to modern requirements of European legislation. Aim. Analysis of the system for determining occupational phosphorus poisoning in Ukraine and its comparison with modern requirements of The International Labor Organization. Materials and Methods. The analytical review of scientific publications is carried out using abstract databases of scientific libraries PubMed, Medline and text databases of scientific publishers Pub Med, Central, BMJ group and other VIP databases. The analysis of reporting materials of The State Labor Service of Ukraine (SLSU), methodological approaches of The International Labor Organization (ILO) is carried out. Methods of system, comparative, and content analysis are used. Results. The results obtained in the study indicate an extremely low prevalence of toxic lesions of occupational and environmentally determined genesis in Ukraine: chemical intoxication accounts for less than 0.2% in the structure of occupational diseases, and phosphorus poisoning has not been registered in the last 20 years. Significant discrepancies were found in the system of recognition of occupational phosphorus poisoning in Ukraine in comparison with the methodological recommendations of The International Labor Organization-2022. In contrast to the instructions for the application of the list of occupational diseases (LOD) of The International Labor Organization-2022, similar documents in Ukraine do not provide a characteristic of phosphorus properties, its toxicological profile, the minimum duration of exposure that causes occupational disease, the duration of the latent period, which complicates the recognition of occupational diseases, objectification of the diagnosis, and also leads to a distortion of statistical indicators regarding occupational morbidity. Conclusions. The recognition system of occupational phosphorus poisoning in Ukraine needs to be adapted to the European recommendations and requirements recommended by the ILO. First of all, this concerns the list of occupational diseases and instructions for its use, bringing them to the norms of international legislation will allow unifying the diagnostic system, objectifying it and establishing a system for registering occupational diseases at the proper level. The problem is particularly relevant given the high risk of phosphorus intoxication of the population, military and certain professional groups on the territory of military operations in Ukraine. Keywords: phosphorus, occupational poisoning, military operations, list of occupational diseases.

Utilization of outpatient service of pneumoconiosis patients in Chongqing and its influencing factors

Objective: To understand the utilization and characteristics of outpatient services for pneumoconiosis patients within two weeks in Chongqing, and analyze the influencing factors, so as to provide reference for relevant policy making. Methods: From October 2020 to October 2022, 1771 pneumoconiosis patients who met the inclusion criteria were selected by multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling. A questionnaire survey was conducted on their basic situation, utilization of outpatient services within two weeks, treatment for pneumoconiosis-related symptoms, and selection of medical service institutions using χ(2)-test and logistic regression analysis. Results: All the 1771 pneumoconiosis patients were male, with the average age of (56.1±10.19) years old. In the pneumoconiosis patients were treated in outpatient department within 2 weeks.40.0% (204/510) of aged 41~50 years Rural patients accounted for 87.8% (448/510) ; 65.1% (332/510) of silicosis patients, 37.5% (191/510) of stage II patients, 75.1% (383/510) of patients did not continue to engage in dust work after diagnosis of pneumoconiosis, and 57.1% (291/510) of patients never had work-related injury insurance at work. The outpatient rate within two weeks of pneumoconiosis related assistance and subsistence allowance was 17.6% (90/510) and 12.5% (64/510), respectively. The average self-health score of the patients was (52.9±16.2). 28.2% of the patients had purchased work-related injury insurance; Among the 1204 patients who received the treatment within two weeks, 42.2% were in the outpatient department, 20.7% were in the inpatient department, and 36.9% were self-buyers. There was a significant difference between the different treatment methods of the patients (χ(2)=27.53, P<0.05). There was a significant difference in patients from different residence choosing to visit different medical institutions (χ(2)=13.97, P<0.05). The stage of pneumoconiosis, presence of complications, presence of work injury insurance, self-health score, and whether he/she has been hospitalized in the past year are the important factors affecting the outpatient treatment of pneumoconiosis patients. Conclusion: The utilization of outpatient service of pneumoconiosis patients is influenced by demographic sociology, social support and disease characteristics. The quality of occupational disease medical service in primary health institutions should be strengthened so that pneumoconiosis patients can get convenient and effective treatment. Establish a more perfect social security support system to reduce the disease burden of pneumoconiosis patients.

Analysis of the epidemiological traits of occupational pneumoconiosis in Qinhuangdao between 1961 and 2020

Objective: To study the prevalence of occupational pneumoconiosis in Qinhuangdao from 1961 to 2020 and offer a foundation for developing occupational pneumoconiosis prevention and control methods. Methods: In December 2020, the data of occupational pneumoconiosis cases diagnosed by medical institutions with occupational disease diagnosis qualifications in Qinhuangdao City from 1961 to 2020 were collected Anova or kruskal-Walls tests and chi-square tests were used for inter-group comparisons of continuous and categorical variables, and LSD tests or Tamhane T2 tests were used for multiple comparisons. Results: Between 1961 and 2020, 384 cases of pneumoconiosis were documented in Qinhuangdao, of which 382 (99.5%) patients were men and 2 (0.5%) were women. The average dust service duration is 15 (9, 25) years, with a minimum duration of 0.5 years and a maximum duration of 49 years; Cases were primarily distributed in Qinglong Manchu Autonomous County (187 cases, 48.7%) and the Haigang district (160 cases, 41.7%) ; Type of pneumoconiosis was silicosis (340 cases, 88.5%), mainly 273 cases (71.1%) of stage I, 88 cases (22.9%) of stage II, and 23 cases (6.0% of stage III) ; Cases of Phase II and III and with short lengths of service are mainly concentrated in medium-sized, small, private limited liability companies and collective enterprises. Rrock work (166 cases, 43.2%), and loading kiln workers (42 cases, 10.9%) were the main types. Conclusion: Because the distribution of pneumoconiosis cases in Qinhuangdao city is concentrated and the length of service is decreasing, it is important to enhance the oversight of important area, businesses, industries, and job categories in line with the growth of the region's mineral resources.

PneumoLLM: Harnessing the power of large language model for pneumoconiosis diagnosis

The conventional pretraining-and-finetuning paradigm, while effective for common diseases with ample data, faces challenges in diagnosing data-scarce occupational diseases like pneumoconiosis. Recently, large language models (LLMs) have exhibits unprecedented ability when conducting multiple tasks in dialogue, bringing opportunities to diagnosis. A common strategy might involve using adapter layers for vision–language alignment and diagnosis in a dialogic manner. Yet, this approach often requires optimization of extensive learnable parameters in the text branch and the dialogue head, potentially diminishing the LLMs’ efficacy, especially with limited training data. In our work, we innovate by eliminating the text branch and substituting the dialogue head with a classification head. This approach presents a more effective method for harnessing LLMs in diagnosis with fewer learnable parameters. Furthermore, to balance the retention of detailed image information with progression towards accurate diagnosis, we introduce the contextual multi-token engine. This engine is specialized in adaptively generating diagnostic tokens. Additionally, we propose the information emitter module, which unidirectionally emits information from image tokens to diagnosis tokens. Comprehensive experiments validate the superiority of our methods.

Evaluation of the Level of Psychological Distress in Construction Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Southern Spain.

The COVID-19 pandemic posed a major challenge for construction companies, which were confronted with the need to prevent the enormous negative socio-psychological impact of the pandemic on their employees. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of psychological distress among construction workers in an advanced phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in Andalusia, southern Spain. For this, a cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted using online questionnaires with data on sociodemographic variables and employment situation, COVID-19 pandemic-related data, and Goldberg's General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). A total of 860 questionnaires from all provinces of Andalusia, Spain, were collected between March and May 2022. Descriptive statistical analyses and non-parametric Mann-Whitney U and Chi-squared tests were performed, followed by logistic regression analysis. The incidence of psychological distress was higher among women, individuals under 43 years of age, those with a family income below EUR 1200, participants whose working conditions had been affected by the pandemic, those who had not received adequate means or specific training to protect themselves from infection, those who had experienced symptoms, those who had suffered side effects after vaccination, and those who had been hospitalised. The logistic regression analysis predicted the occurrence of psychological distress in this study by the effect of the pandemic on mental/emotional well-being, the working conditions affected during the pandemic, health-related variables, and the age of the worker. The correctly classified percentage was 75.1%. Assessing psychological distress in construction sectors may allow for the identification of vulnerable groups or even help to reduce the number of errors in daily practice and potential risks of occupational injury or illness.

Occupational Contact Dermatitis in Construction Workers: A Retrospective Analysis of the North American Contact Dermatitis Group Data, 2001-2020.

Background: Construction workers (CWs) are at risk for occupational contact dermatitis (CD) owing to workplace exposures. Objective: Determine the prevalence of occupational allergic CD and characterize common occupational allergens in CWs referred for patch testing in the United States and Canada. Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional analysis of patients patch tested by the North American Contact Dermatitis Group from 2001 to 2020. Results: Of 47,843 patch-tested patients, 681 (1.4%) were CWs. Compared with non-CWs, CWs were more likely to be male (91.0% vs 30.9%) have occupational skin disease (36.9% vs 11.4%) and have hand involvement (37.2% vs 22.5%) (all P < 0.0001). Of 681 CWs, 60.1% (411) had clinically relevant positive patch test reactions, and nearly 1/3 of CWs (128) had occupationally relevant reactions. Most common occupationally relevant allergens were potassium dichromate 0.25% pet. (30.5%, 39/128), bisphenol A epoxy resin 1% pet. (28.1%, 36/128), carba mix 3% pet. (14.8%, 19/128), cobalt (ii) chloride hexahydrate 1% pet. (14.1%, 18/128), and thiuram mix 1% pet. (14.1%, 18/128). Top sources of occupationally relevant allergens were cement/concrete/mortar (20.4%, 46/225), gloves (15.1%, 34/225), and coatings (paint/lacquer/shellac/varnish/stains) (9.8%, 22/225). Conclusions: Occupational CD in North American CWs is common. In this group, frequently identified etiological sources of occupational allergic CD included metals, epoxy resin, and rubber.

Professional burnout and quality of life of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, average medical workers turned out to be the most vulnerable category among medical workers in terms of professional stress, professional burnout, and a decrease in quality of life. Goal. To establish the features of professional burnout and the quality of life of MS in specialized COVID hospitals, multidisciplinary hospitals (MP hospitals), as well as polyclinics (PCs) during the pandemic of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19. Material and methods. The study was performed at the Department of Occupational Diseases and Clinical Pharmacology named after the Honored Scientist of the Russian Federation, Professor V.V. Kosarev of the Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation and the Regional Center of Occupational Pathology of the Samara City Hospital No. 5. The following MS groups were examined: the first group consisted of nurses working in a COVID hospital (n=29); the second group consisted of nurses working in a multidisciplinary hospital (n=31); the third group consisted of nurses working in polyclinics (n=29); The fourth, control group (GC), included employees of engineering, technical and economic specialties that are not related in their field of activity to work in medical organizations (n=190). The assessment of professional burnout syndrome was carried out using the Maslach Burnout professional burnout assessment questionnaire, the V.V. Boyko questionnaire, the quality of life was determined using the SF-36 questionnaire. Results. It has been established that the work of MS during the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with the impact on medical workers of a number of specific risk factors related to the provision of medical care to infected patients, as well as with significant changes in work regarding aspects related to organization, safety, which contribute to an increase in the level of occupational stress, professional burnout, and a decrease in the quality of life. Conclusion. The work of MS in a COVID hospital, when compared with MS in hospitals, nurses working in polyclinics, is associated with an increase in the level of professional stress, the level of professional burnout. It is necessary to continue research on the emotional state of MS in order to timely carry out preventive treatment to preserve the health of this category of medical workers. Limitations of the study. The study has regional (Samara region) and professional (in terms of detailing the working conditions in the studied comparison groups) limitations. Compliance with ethical standards. The study was carried out within the framework of the complex topic of the Department of Occupational Diseases and Clinical Pharmacology named after Honored Scientist of the Russian Federation Professor V.V. Kosarev of the Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of the Russian Ministry of Health of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation «A systematic approach to early diagnosis, prevention and prediction of the impact of low-intensity industrial factors on the health of workers» (state registration number AAAA18-118122190069-6, date registration on December 21, 2018). The study was approved by the local Ethics Committee of the Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of the Russian Ministry of Health on 11/23/2021. Patient consent. Each participant of the study gave informed voluntary written consent to participate in the study and publish personal medical information in an impersonal form in the journal «Meditsinskaya sestra (The Nurse)»

Topical application of a CCL22-binding aptamer suppresses contact allergy

Allergic contact dermatitis is a prevalent occupational disease with limited therapeutic options. The chemokine CCL22, a ligand of the chemokine receptor CCR4, directs the migration of immune cells. Here, it is shown that genetic deficiency of CCL22 effectively ameliorated allergic reactions in contact hypersensitivity (CHS), a commonly used mouse model of allergic contact dermatitis. For pharmacological inhibition of CCL22, DNA aptamers specific for murine CCL22 were generated by systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX). Nine CCL22-binding aptamers were initially selected and functionally tested in vitro. The 29-nucleotide DNA aptamer AJ102.29m profoundly inhibited CCL22-dependent T cell migration and did not elicit undesired Toll-like receptor-dependent immune activation. AJ102.29m efficiently ameliorated CHS in vivo after systemic application. Moreover, CHS-associated allergic symptoms were also reduced following topical application of the aptamer on the skin. Microscopic analysis of skin treated with AJ102.29m ex vivo demonstrated that the aptamer could penetrate into the epidermis and dermis. The finding that epicutaneous application of the aptamer AJ102.29m in a cream was as effective in suppressing the allergic reaction as intraperitoneal injection paves the way for therapeutic use of aptamers beyond the current routes of systemic administration.

Proposal for Prevention of Occupational Disease Risk Using the Hiradc Method at PT X in the Dyeing Department

People in this era have various needs in carrying out life. The needs that need to be used by the community have multiple kinds of things, such as clothing. Clothes used by the community go through various processes before becoming finished goods. Before becoming ready-to-wear, clothes came from raw materials such as fabric rolls. There are multiple production processes, such as yarn, fabric, chemical dyeing, etc. One of the places where fabrics are produced is textile factories. A textile factory is a company that produces products in the form of fabrics. The manufacture of fabrics that occur in textile factories must involve mixing chemicals so that the fabric has good quality. The process of mixing these chemical substances involves workers, and the chemical substances used are classified as Hazardous and Toxic Materials (B3), so these chemicals can have a bad impact on their workers if there is physical contact with the worker's body. Exposure to chemicals in the worker's body will cause a risk of developing Occupational Diseases (PAK). Therefore, in this study, data will be processed to prevent workers' risk of Occupational Diseases (PAK) using the HIRADC (Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, and Determining Control) method. The proposal given in this study is a proposal for the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for preventive measures against Occupational Diseases (PAK) for workers

Seroprevalence and Risk Factors of Brucellosis in Abattoir Workers in Fars Province, Iran

Background &amp; Objectives: Brucellosis remains an important occupational zoonotic disease, especially in developing countries. The disease is endemic in Iran and the Fars province. One of the main routes of brucellosis infection is at slaughterhouses, where the workers directly contact infected animals. This study was designed to estimate the seroprevalence of brucellosis among slaughterhouse workers in the Fars province, Iran. Materials &amp; Methods: Ninety blood samples were collected from workers of two livestock slaughterhouses (Marvdasht and Kazeroon), in Fars, Iran. The sera were assessed for the Rose Bengal test (RBT), as a screening test for brucellosis, and the positive samples were subjected to the Wright test. The positive Wright samples were finally tested for the 2 -mercaptoethanol (2 -ME) agglutination test. Results: Brucellosis prevalence was 13.33% using RBT and 4.44% of the workers showed active brucellosis. No significant relationship was found between the questionnaire variables and brucellosis tests; exceptionally, there was a relationship between the workers' statements regarding having had brucellosis and RBT (P=0.01). Conclusion : Our study highlights the practical application of serological tests, including RBT, Wright, and 2 - ME as a simple strategy to monitor brucellosis and to diagnose and treat its active form in endemic regions. Although a small frequency of the disease was found, it could cause significant health and economic damage to humans and animals in endemic areas. Furthermore, taking enough protective measures is highly recommended for slaughterhouse workers to prevent human brucellosis.

Risk Perception and Occupational Health and Safety: Evaluation in National and Global Context

Risks can be prevalent problems both within national borders and beyond. Examples of recent global infectious diseases such as natural disasters, man-made disasters (such as exposure to radiation), Covid, H1N1, and Ebola viruses can serve as examples of this. Interpretations and subjective judgments about risk are called risk perceptions and are important determinants of health and risk-related decisions (such as policy decisions about nuclear power plants, genetically modified foods, processed meats). We conducted research on studies on perception around the world, trends and what can be studied in the future. In this study, we identified 137 relevant publications from the SCOPUS database between 1987 and 2023. All the data obtained were analyzed using the Bibliometrix computer program based on R-studio. Analyses included the analysis of co-occurrences of networks, thematic maps, and trending topics. According to the findings of the present study, all reports were published in 101 sources since 1987. These documents have an annual growth rate of 5.55, increasing significantly after 2009. The countries with the highest number of publications are Australia, followed by Canada, Italy, Portugal, and the United States. Due to the nature of the topic, the occurrence of joint publications among countries is quite low. Individuals’ awareness of occupational health and safety issues increases their awareness of workplace risks and, therefore, the likelihood of preventing workplace accidents and occupational illnesses.

SUBSTANTIATION OF CHANGES IN THE CERTIFICATION OF THE TRACTOR DRIVER’S WORKPLACE IN MODERN MACHINE-TRACTOR UNITS

The study aims to identify possible changes in the working conditions of tractor drivers under the computerisation of workplaces and to develop proposals for changing the requirements for sanitary standards in the design of tractors and agricultural machinery. The article analyses the impact of modern technologies on the working conditions of tractor drivers in agriculture. It investigates various aspects of work, including using on-board computers, air conditioning, and satellite navigation, and their impact on workers’ health. The authors consider health risks, such as increased noise levels and work with on-board computers, and reveal the lack of consideration of these aspects in regulatory documents. In particular, we have found that using on-board computers significantly simplifies the process of controlling agricultural machinery but can lead to increased noise and vibration levels, negatively affecting workers’ health. Some studies have shown that prolonged work with on-board computers can lead to the development of occupational diseases, such as musculoskeletal disorders, impaired vision, and others. In addition, air conditioning in tractor cabs can cause colds due to sudden temperature changes and increase the risk of legionella infection due to the water condensation accumulation in ventilation systems. The research also found that the legal and regulatory documents governing the working conditions of tractor drivers do not consider the use of modern technologies, which creates gaps in worker protection. Regulatory documents should contain requirements for the parameters of monitors and their placement in the working area of tractor drivers in agricultural production, such as adjusting the reflectivity of the screen, the main adjusted visual characteristics of monitors, and the location of video terminals in the tractor cab without being directly in the line of sight. It is necessary to develop measures to prevent the overwork of tractor drivers. Regulations should include rules for the use of air conditioners, as well as for cleaning air conditioning ducts and replacing filters on time. The general conclusion is that there is a need to strengthen the regulation of tractor drivers’ working conditions and to include requirements for using modern technologies in the relevant regulations. These measures will ensure the safety and health of workers in agriculture and reduce the risk of occupational diseases. Keywords: machine-tractor unit, tractor driver, workplace certification, labour protection, video terminal.

Sensing Volatile Pollutants with Spin-Coated Films Made of Pillar[5]arene Derivatives and Data Validation via Artificial Neural Networks.

Different types of solvents, aromatic and aliphatic, are used in many industrial sectors, and long-term exposure to these solvents can lead to many occupational diseases. Therefore, it is of great importance to detect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) using economic and ergonomic techniques. In this study, two macromolecules based on pillar[5]arene, named P[5]-1 and P[5]-2, were synthesized and applied to the detection of six different environmentally volatile pollutants in industry and laboratories. The thin films of the synthesized macrocycles were coated by using the spin coating technique on a suitable substrate under optimum conditions. All compounds and the prepared thin film surfaces were characterized by NMR, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), elemental analysis, atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and contact angle measurements. All vapor sensing measurements were performed via the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) optical technique, and the responses of the P[5]-1 and P[5]-2 thin-film sensors were calculated with ΔI/Io × 100. The responses of the P[5]-1 and P[5]-2 thin-film sensors to dichloromethane vapor were determined to be 7.17 and 4.11, respectively, while the responses to chloroform vapor were calculated to be 5.24 and 2.8, respectively. As a result, these thin-film sensors showed a higher response to dichloromethane and chloroform vapors than to other harmful vapors. The SPR kinetic data for vapors validated that a nonlinear autoregressive neural network was performed with exogenous input for the best molecular modeling by using normalized reflected light intensity values. It can be clearly seen from the correlation coefficient values that the nonlinear autoregressive with exogenous input artificial neural network (NARX-ANN) model for dichloromethane converged more successfully to the experimental data compared to other gases. The correlation coefficient values of the dichloromethane modeling results were approximately 0.99 and 0.98 for P[5]-1 and P[5]-2 thin-film sensors, respectively.

Contemporary Concise Review 2023: Environmental and occupational lung diseases.

Air pollutants have various effects on human health in environmental and occupational settings. Air pollutants can be a risk factor for incidence, exacerbation/aggravation and death due to various lung diseases, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), hypersensitivity pneumonitis or pneumonia (HP), pulmonary fibrosis such as pneumoconiosis and malignant respiratory diseases such as lung cancer and malignant pleural mesothelioma. Environmental and occupational respiratory diseases are crucial clinical and social issues worldwide, although the burden of respiratory disease due to environmental and occupational causes varies depending on country/region, demographic variables, geographical location, industrial structure and socioeconomic situation. The correct recognition of environmental and occupational lung diseases and taking appropriate measures are essential to their effective prevention.

Analysis of electric filters for cleaning the air environment of production premises

RELEVANCE: The problem of hazardous working conditions in Russia attracts attention due to an increase in the proportion of workers exposed to negative impacts on their health. Of particular interest is the analysis of the air environment as the main factor influencing human health. 32.2% of workers in hazardous working conditions are exposed to airborne factors, which leads to occupational diseases. To reduce the harmful effects of the air, it is necessary to clean it from harmful components. A promising device for air purification is an electric precipitator.PURPOSE: The study is aimed at selecting and optimizing electric precipitators for air purification in industrial premises. The goal is to determine the most effective design of an electric precipitator for cleaning the air environment of industrial premises.METHODS: The analysis is carried out on the basis of statistical data, the results of studies of electric precipitators of various designs for cleaning the air from dust, harmful gases and microorganisms. The results are used for comparative analysis.RESULTS: The study reveals that different designs of electrostatic precipitators demonstrate different effectiveness in air purification depending on the type of design. The design of corona electrodes affects ozone generation. It has been established that two-zone electrostatic precipitators with needle corona electrodes on the negative corona can significantly reduce ozone emissions. Wet electrostatic precipitators have regeneration, and the presence of several stages increases the cleaning efficiency. Electrostatic filters do not generate ozone and can be used in explosive low-volume areas.CONCLUSION: The study confirms that the choice of electrostatic precipitator should depend on the specifics of production and the volume of the room. For explosive environments, electrostatic precipitators should be preferred, while for large areas, a wet multi-stage electrostatic precipitator is recommended. Electrostatic precipitators-ozonizers can be effective for air disinfection. Summarizing the results allows us to conclude that it is important to choose the appropriate type of electrostatic precipitator to ensure optimal air conditions for the safety of workers.