International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Volume:2 Issue: 1, Jan 2011

Climate change is occurring as a result of warming of the earth’s atmosphere due to human activity generating excess amounts of greenhouse gases. Because of its potential impact on the hydrologic cycle and severe weather events, climate change is expected to have an enormous effect on human health, including on the burden and distribution of many infectious diseases. The infectious diseases that will be most affected by climate change include those that are spread by insect vectors and by contaminated water. The burden of adverse health effects due to these infectious diseases will fall primarily on developing countries, while it is the developed countries that are primarily responsible for climate change. It is up to governments and individuals to take the lead in halting climate change, and we must increase our understanding of the ecology of infectious diseases in order to protect vulnerable populations

History of underwater diving dates back to antiquity. Breath-hold technique in diving was known to the ancient nations. However, deep diving progressed only in the early decades of the 19th century as the result of advancements in efficient underwater technologies which subsequently led to invention of sophisticated sets of scuba diving in the 20th century. Currently, diving is performed for various purposes including commercial, recreational, military, underwater construction, oil industry, underwater archeology and scientific assessment of marine life. By increasing popularity of underwater diving, dive-related medical conditions gradually became more evident and created a new challenge for the health care professionals, so that eventually, a specialty the so-called “diving medicine” was established. Most of the diving-associated disorders appear in the head and neck. The most common of all occupational disorders associated with diving are otologic diseases. External otitis has been reported as the most common otolaryngologic problem in underwater divers. Exostosis of the external ear canal may be formed in divers as the result of prolonged diving in cold waters. Other disorders of the ear and paranasal sinuses in underwater divers are caused by barometric pressure change (i.e., barotraumas), and to a lesser extent by decompression sickness. Barotrauma of the middle ear is the most prevalent barotrauma in divers. The inner ear barotraumas, though important, is less common. The present paper is a brief overview of diving-related ear disorders particularly in scuba divers.

Exposures to lead above the threshold value of 50–60 μg/dL have been linked to diminished semen quality parameters. Worldwide, the lead exposure has been diminished during the last years. Therefore, it has become of a great concern to examine the effects of lead exposures on semen quality at low levels of exposure. To evaluate the effect of low level (<20 µg/dL) blood lead on semen quality and sperm chromatin structure. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 29 men with primary infertility attending the outpatient clinic of infertility in Mansoura University Hospital, Egypt, from March to May 2010. Semen quality parameters and sperm flow-cytometry analysis were compared between two groups of infertile men with blood lead level (BLL) above, and below 20 µg/dL, respectively. The mean BLL in the studied subjects was 20.08 µg/dL. 45% of the studied men had BLL ≥20 µg/dL. Non-significant reduction in sperm count, impaired sperm motility and altered sperm morphology were observed in those with BLL ≥20 µg/dL compared to those with BLL <20 µg/dL. Concerning semen flow-cytometry analysis, percentage of haploid sperms was significantly lower among men with BLL ≥20 µg/dL (78%) compared to that among those with BLL <20 µg/dL (87%). A positive significant correlation was observed between BLL and percentage of diploid sperms. The chromatin condensation was however, negatively correlated with BLL (p<0.05). Semen quality of men with primary infertility does not have any correlation with BLL at the cutoff value of 20 µg/dL. However, even at this low level, a significant decrease in haploid sperm counts and chromatin condensation was observed.

Few studies have examined the relationship between perceived responsibilities by workers and job characteristics and experiences of stress. To examine the relationship between job stress and work responsibilities and job characteristics. We analyzed data from 2737 adults who were labor force participants in the province of Alberta, Canada. A logistic regression model was employed to examine factors associated with high job stress. About 18% of the studied workers considered their job as being “highly stressful.” Workers who were male, did not consider their job a career or who were highly satisfied with their jobs were significantly less likely to identify their jobs as “highly stressful.” The probability of describing a job as “highly stressful” significantly increased as workers perceived their actions have an affect on those around them or when their jobs required additional or variable hours. A number of factors are associated with experiencing high work stress including being more engaged with work. This is an important finding for employers, offering insight into where interventions may be targeted.

Leptospirosis, a spirochetal zoonosis, is considered an occupational disease of persons engaged in agriculture, sewage works, forestry, and butchery. To determine the environmental sources and the knowledge, attitude and practices for leptospirosis among butchers and slaughterhouse workers, as well as the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among cattle and pigs presented for slaughter. Using an interviewer administered questionnaire, all 110 butchers and other slaughterhouse workers in the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrew, Jamaica were surveyed. In addition, 179 blood samples from animals presented for slaughter were tested for anti-Leptospira antibodies using the microscopic agglutination test (MAT). Analyses indicated that people with the studied occupations are at risk for developing leptospirosis due to several environmental risk factors that exist in slaughterhouses. Among the risk factors, limited knowledge of the disease and its transmission, lower educational level attained, younger age and unhealthy behaviors (e.g., hand washing and improper or lack of use of personal protective gears), presence of stray dogs and rodents, and inadequate maintenance of physical plants, were found to be important. Of the total number of animal samples tested, 20 (11%) were positive. Canicola and Hardjo (among cattle) and Bratislava (among pigs) were the major seroreactors. Butchers and slaughterhouse workers engaged in animal handling and slaughtering could be frequently exposed to leptospirosis, and hence control strategies targeting at these populations should be implemented.