Journal of Occupational Health and Epidemiology
Volume:1 Issue: 1, Spring 2012

Millions of construction industry accidents occur in the world causing demages and injuries to workers and consequently economical losses every year. The aim of this study was to determine an estimator model for accidents among construction industry workers, in the years 2006 - 2011 for the first time, in Yazd city. In this descriptive study, the questionnaire included items asking about variables such as age, occupation, type of accident, injured organ and the outcome of the accident. Time Series Model was used in this study to estimate accidents among the Yazd construction workers up to 2011. Fatality rate of workers who did not have insurance was more than those who had, which was statistically significant (p < 0.001). The greatest rate of accident was falling (48.58%) and the lowest was chocking (29%). The relationships of accident outcomes with type of occupation and also the injured part of body were statistically significant in the construction industry (p<0.001). After testing many models, time series model of quadratic form was the closest model to the trend of data. This model estimation shows that if the situation is the same as now in 2011 the accident cases will be more than 300 per year in 2012 and later. So this model is recommended to make changes in the trend for preventing the accidents in the future.

Controversies exist in publications about the association between shift work and hypertension. This study aimed to explore the relationship between shift work and the level of systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well as serum cholesterol among nurses in Kerman province, Southeast, Iran. In this historical cohort study 100 hospital nurses who had been employed for more than five years were recruited. Respondents were divided into two groups based on their working schedule (shift work/day work). After one year follow up, both systolic and diastolic blood pressures were measured. A blood sample was also taken for recording the level of serum cholesterol. Data were analysed using SPSS (version 14) and paired t-test and Mann Whitney U test and relative risk with 95% CI was also calculated. Demographic variables as well as the mean working years between shift working (10.98±3.6yrs) and day working (11.18±4.4yrs) nurses were not significantly different. The results of age-adjusted relative risk calculation showed that even after adjusting for respondents’ age, there was not any significant risk of suffering from higher blood pressure among shift workers. The mean levels of cholesterol in the serum of shift workers (192.18± 43.6) and day workers (186.7 ±47.7) were not significantly different. Our findings confirmed the previous studies’ results that reported no significant association between shift working and the level of blood pressure among nurses. More investigations are needed to explore factors, which could increase the risk of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases among shift working nurses.

The sound is an environmental and occupational pollutant and can cause a number of reactions in human body, in which hearing loss is one of the most important effects. Cement industry is one of the industries with noise induced hazards. The aim of this study was to evaluate the noise level in different parts of Kerman Cement Plant. This descriptive cross-sectional study was done in Kerman Cement Plant in 2009. The sound level was measured according to the standard ISO 9612:1997 (E) in workers main commuting spots. Noise levels were measured by the testo SLM device (Model CEL-815) in network A and calibrator model IEC942/90 claa2. Data were analyzed by the EXCEL software. The highest sound pressure level in the Cement Plant (106 db) was recorded in the stone crushing units and the grinding units (mills); 14 units had a mean sound level above the permissible 85 db noise level. There are specific units with high noise exposure in the Kerman Cement plant. Thus systematic noise evaluation in the working units, worker education, noise control, distributing proper standard noise protection equipment among the workers, performing annual audiometries, and evaluating and updating noise control programs are necessary.

Genital injuries are important because of their association with injuries to major organs and vasculature of pelvis. Both degolving of genitalia skin and amputation of penile glans and testis are rare conditions. Although genital injury is rarely life threatening, it can result in serious sexual, psychological and physiological consequences. This study aimed to introduce few very rare cases with genital injuries among pistachio farmers in Rafsanjan, Iran. This study is a case series conducted from 2000 up to 2009 in Moradi hospital of Rafsanjan city, Iran. Patients´ data were gathered during 10 years and analyzed using SPSS software version 16. Among 9 victims of genital injuries, caused by accident with tractor during spraying pistachio farms, 7 had suffered from partial or total scrotal or penile degolving, one suffered from testis amputation and one from penile glans amputation. Mean age of victims was 28.6 ± 3.57 years, and they were unemployed for 3.1 ± 0.78 weeks on average. In order to reduce genitalia injuries caused by agricultural machinery, tractors safety should be given more attention and also pistachio farm workers should become aware of these occupational risks.

There are studies reporting the adverse effects of working outside the house on women’s mental health. As the mental health is affected by the structure and culture of each society, this study was conducted to compare the mental health of housewives and working woman in Yazd county, Iran (2010). This cross-sectional study was done in Yazd county in 2010. Three hundred women were studied in two groups; group 1 consisted of 150 housewives and group 2 included 150 working women. The symptom checklist 90 (SCL-90) questionnaire was utilized for testing their mental health. SPSS-15 was used for analyzing the data. The results indicated that working women had better mental health than housewives (p= 0.0001). Moreover among the working women, the medical group had better mental health than the other groups (p= 0.006). There was no significant relationship between SCL-90 score and the number of children and also working history of women. But, there was a significant relationship between mental health of working women and their husbands´ satisfaction of their jobs (p=0.002). Findings of this study showed that working women have better mental health than housewives. Also a significant association was found between the type of job and working women’s mental health.

Rug weaving is an important source of income in rural areas of Kerman and hand woven rugs are considered as the most important non-petroleum export of Iran. In this study, we describe the working environment as well as the occupational risk factors of these rug weavers. This study was performed in the Golzar region including Shirinak, Chartagh and Babe Shamil villages. The workplaces were identified and the hazards of each workshop were determined using the study checklist. The workers were also screened for medical conditions. The average age of the workers was 29 years. The work place evaluation showed that the floor, wall, ceiling, light, temperature and general condition of most of the workplaces was inappropriate and non-standard, and needed major changes. The average working hours were 9.1 hours a day. Medical problems such as visual disturbances, musculoskeletal problems, psychological disorders, gynecological disorders, goiter and tightness of breath were discovered in the workers. Many rug weavers still work in improper conditions, and need occupational health knowledge and financial support to improve the physical characteristics of their workplaces and prevent debilitating disorders.

Health care workers occupationally are exposed to blood and other body fluids which might increase their risk of acquiring blood-borne pathogens and psychological stress. The aim of the present study was to determine the lifetime occupational exposure to needlestick injuries and body fluids among doctors and medical students in Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences (2009). In this descriptive study, 100 doctors and medical students were asked to complete a valid and reliable self-reporting questionnaire regarding their lifetime occupational exposure to needlestick and body fluids. Data were analysed using SPSS. T-test and Chi-square test were used to compare the groups. The results highlighted that 57 (60%) of the respondents had at least one lifetime occupational exposure to needlestick and 45 persons (48.4%) had exposure to body fluids. However, only in 30 (31.5%) cases the event was reported to the appropriate authorities. The highest number of needlestick injuries occurred within the emergency departments (n=29, 51%), during nightshift (n=29, 51%), and with suture needle (n=37, 65%). Occupational exposures to needlestick and body fluids among doctors and medical students in our study have occurred with a relatively high lifetime incidence. Improving medical attentions might have positive effects on decreasing the incidence and prevalence of these constant occupational threats.

Fluorine is an essential micronutrient for human health, serving to strengthen the apatite matrix of skeletal tissues and teeth. In regions where the fluoride (F−) concentration of water is naturally low (<0.5 mg/l), some communities have chosen to add this constituent to their drinking water to strengthen teeth and to minimize cavities. The aim of this study was to determine fluoride concentration in drinking water in shahroud city at the northern part of Iran as well as determination of DMF value in 7 year old children, for a duration of 6 years. In this descriptive study, 138 students aged 7 were chosen randomly from Shahroud schools and were followed up for a duration of 6 years (2004-2009). They were examined by a dentist for determining the numbers of decayed, missing and filled permanent teeth. Also 120 samples were taken from drinking water in the city and Ion-selective method was used for measureing fluoride concentration. Determination of both DMF index and fluoride mean concentration was repeated for six years from 2004 to 2009. Fluoride concentrations were between 0.45 to 0.75 mg/L and DMF index was between 3.18 to 3.81. There was a significant difference between both DMF index and fluoride mean concentrations in different years. DMF index obtained in our study was higher than the index reported for the whole country (1.2-2.6mg/L).