Improvement of inspection system for reduction of small-scale construction site accident in Korea

LIM, Sejong,OH, Ah-ra,WON, Jeong-hun,CHON, Jae-joon National Institute of Industrial Health 2018 Industrial health Vol.56 No.6

<P>This study analyzed the trend of construction accidents focused on the small-scale construction sites and the correlation between the ratios of official inspection by government and total fatality injuries per 10,000 people (TFR) by construction size in Korea. The method is to analyze statistical data for the construction accidents and official safety inspection system. In construction, accidents rate and TFR are recently increasing unlike other industries. In addition, the smaller the scale of construction sites, the higher the TFR, and vice versa. The smaller the scale of construction sites, the greater the degree of difference in the TFR for each year, and vice versa. In small-scale construction sites, which have amounted less than $273,000 (£231,000), approximately 45.7% of deaths occurred on sites between $36,400 (£30,800) and $182,000 (£154,000). The ratio of inspection, which represents the ratio of official inspection proportion to site share, is in inverse proportion to the TFR by construction size. As the ratio approached zero, TFR became higher, and the higher the ratio, the lower TFR since the official inspection was mainly carried out in medium and large-scale construction sites. To get an effect of official inspection, the focus of official inspection should move onto the small-scale construction site.</P>

Does the hair influence heat extraction from the head during head cooling under heat stress?

SHIN, Sora,PARK, Joonhee,LEE, Joo-Young National Institute of Industrial Health 2015 Industrial health Vol. No.

<P>The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of head hair on thermoregulatory responses when cooling the head under heat stress. Eight young males participated in six experimental conditions: normal hair (100–130 mm length) and cropped hair (5 mm length) with three water inlet temperatures of 10, 15, and 20°C. The head and neck of subjects were cooled by a liquid perfused hood while immersing legs at 42°C water for 60 min in a sitting position at the air temperature of 28°C with 30% RH. The results showed that heat removal from the normal hair condition was not significantly different from the cropped hair condition. Rectal and mean skin temperatures, and sweat rate showed no significant differences between the normal and cropped hair conditions. Heat extraction from the head was significantly greater in 10°C than in 15 or 20°C cooling (<I>p</I><0.05) for both normal and cropped hair, whereas subjects preferred the 15°C more than the 10 or 20°C cooling regimen. These results indicate that the selection of effective cooling temperature is more crucial than the length of workers’ hair during head cooling under heat stress, and such selection should be under the consideration of subjective perceptions with physiological responses.</P>

Frequency of firefighters’ heat-related illness and its association with removing personal protective equipment and working hours

KIM, Siyeon,KIM, Do-Hee,LEE, Hyo-Hyun,LEE, Joo-Young National Institute of Industrial Health 2019 Industrial health Vol.57 No.3

<P>The purpose of this study was to examine the frequency of firefighters’ heat-related illness (HRI) in the line of duty with relation to resting/working hours and the behaviour of taking off PPE during rest periods based on nationwide survey (N=674). The results showed that 74.8% of firefighters experienced HRI symptoms and 5% of firefighters suffered from symptoms of HRI 20 times or more in a year. This study also showed a statistically significant correlation between working hours and removing PPE with the experience of HRI symptoms (<I>p</I><0.05). In addition, removing PPE except the helmet was correlated with resting hours (<I>p</I><0.001; Gloves: <I>p</I>=0.051), which indicates that removing PPE is related to resting time. This study revealed that firefighters routinely experienced mild HRI symptoms and the fatalities were just a tiny fraction. It is also emphasized that attention should be given on the significant role of taking off PPE during rest and on the standardized firefighters’ rehabilitation followed by its application.</P>

Association between rotating night shift work and metabolic syndrome in Korean workers: differences between 8-hour and 12-hour rotating shift work

OH, Jae-Il,YIM, Hyeon Woo National Institute of Industrial Health 2018 Industrial health Vol.56 No.1

<P>This study aimed to analyze the association between the shift work schedule and metabolic syndrome (MetS). This is a retrospective longitudinal study based on the 2015 health checkup data of 2,090 workers evaluated for MetS in 2010 at a general hospital in Korea. The participants were divided according to their shift work schedule into daytime, three-shift (8-h rotation), and two-shift (12-h rotation) workers. The index that indicates the association between the shift work schedule and MetS is the odds ratio (OR) calculated using multivariate logistic regression. The analysis for the entire group of workers indicated that there was positive association between two-shift rotation and MetS (OR=1.58, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.09, 2.29). In the analysis of rotating night-shift workers, the years of rotating night shifts, frequency of night-shift work, and sleep disturbance were added to the confounding variables, and two-shift work remained positively associated with MetS (OR=1.72, 95% CI: 1.10, 2.70). The risk of MetS differs based on the shift work schedules they engage in. Hence, structural changes to the shift work schedules are required to prevent MetS in night-shift workers.</P>

Changes in pressure pain in the upper trapezius muscle, cervical range of motion, and the cervical flexion-relaxation ratio after overhead work.

Shin, Seung-je,An, Duk-hyun,Oh, Jae-seop,Yoo, Won-gyu National Institute of Industrial Health 2012 Industrial health Vol.50 No.6

<P>This study examined the changes in pressure pain in the upper trapezius muscle, cervical range of motion, and cervical flexion-relaxation ratio after overhead work. 14 workers were recruited. Pressure pain in the upper trapezius muscle, active cervical range of motion, and cervical flexion-relaxation ratio were measured in all subjects once before and once after overhead work. The pressure-pain threshold of the left upper trapezius muscle was 8.6 2.5 lb before overhead work and 7.3 2.4 lb after overhead work; that of the right upper trapezius muscle was 8.8 2.9 and 7.3 2.8 lb, respectively, revealing a significant decrease in pressure-pain threshold with overhead work. All cervical range of motion measures decreased significantly with overhead work. The cervical flexion-relaxation ratio on the left side was 1.3 0.2 before overhead work and 1.1 0.2 after overhead work; the respective values for the right side were 1.4 0.5 and 1.2 0.3 before and after overhead work, revealing a significant decrease with overhead work. We postulate that overhead work can reduce the pressure-pain threshold in the upper trapezius muscle and cause changes in the cervical range of motion and cervical flexion-relaxation ratio.</P>

Diving bradycardia of elderly Korean women divers, haenyeo, in cold seawater: a field report

LEE, Joo-Young,LEE, Hyo-Hyun,KIM, Siyeon,JANG, Young-Joon,BAEK, Yoon-Jeong,KANG, Kwon-Yong National Institute of Industrial Health 2016 Industrial health Vol.54 No.2

<P>The purpose of the present field study was to explore diving patterns and heart rate of elderly Korean women divers (haenyeo) while breath-hold diving in cold seawater. We hypothesized that the decreasing rate in heart rate of elderly haenyeos during breath-hold diving was greater and total diving time was shorter than those of young haenyeos from previous studies. Nine haenyeos participated in a field study [68 ± 10 yr in age, ranged from 56 to 83 yr] at a seawater temperature of 10 to 13 °C. Average total diving time including surface swimming time between dives was 253 ± 73 min (155–341 min). Total frequency of dives was 97 ± 28 times and they dived 23 ± 8 times per hour. All haenyeos showed diving bradycardia with a decreased rate of 20 ± 8% at the bottom time (101 ± 20 bpm) when compared to surface swimming time (125 ± 16 bpm) in the sea. Older haenyeos among the nine elderly haenyeos had shorter diving time, less diving frequencies, and lower heart rate at work (<I>p</I><0.05). These reductions imply that haenyeos voluntarily adjust their workload along with advancing age and diminished cardiovascular functions.</P>

What do firefighters desire from the next generation of personal protective equipment? Outcomes from an international survey

LEE, Joo-Young,PARK, Joonhee,PARK, Huiju,COCA, Aitor,KIM, Jung-Hyun,TAYLOR, Nigel A.S.,SON, Su-Young,TOCHIHARA, Yutaka National Institute of Industrial Health 2015 Industrial health Vol.53 No.5

<P>The purpose of this study was to investigate smart features required for the next generation of personal protective equipment (PPE) for firefighters in Australia, Korea, Japan, and the USA. Questionnaire responses were obtained from 167 Australian, 351 Japanese, 413 Korean, and 763 U.S. firefighters (1,611 males and 61 females). Preferences concerning smart features varied among countries, with 27% of Korean and 30% of U.S. firefighters identifying ‘a location monitoring system’ as the most important element. On the other hand, 43% of Japanese firefighters preferred ‘an automatic body cooling system’ while 21% of the Australian firefighters selected equally ‘an automatic body cooling system’ and ‘a wireless communication system’. When asked to rank these elements in descending priority, responses across these countries were very similar with the following items ranked highest: ‘a location monitoring system’, ‘an automatic body cooling system’, ‘a wireless communication system’, and ‘a vision support system’. The least preferred elements were ‘an automatic body warming system’ and ‘a voice recording system’. No preferential relationship was apparent for age, work experience, gender or anthropometric characteristics. These results have implications for the development of the next generation of PPE along with the international standardisation of the smart PPE.</P>

Dopamine Transporter SPECT of a Liver Cirrhotic with Atypical Parkinsonism

KIM, Jongchul,KIM, Jong-Min,KIM, Yu Kyeong,SHIN, Jung Woo,CHOI, Seong Hoon,KIM, Sang Eun,KIM, Yangho National Institute of Industrial Health 2007 Industrial health Vol.45 No.3

<P>High level of exposure to manganese (Mn) can cause a clinically and pathophysiologically distinct syndrome from idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD). We describe the clinical features and results of [<SUP>123</SUP>I]-fluoropropyl (FP)-CIT SPECT of a liver cirrhotic with atypical parkinsonism. The patient developed atypical parkinsonian features associated with elevated blood Mn from hepatic dysfunction. [<SUP>123</SUP>I]-FP-CIT brain SPECT images of dopamine transporter (DAT) demonstrated overall normal range of DAT uptake in the striatum although there were scattered small hypodense regions. The globus pallidum had increased signal on T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). All these findings are compatible with those of manganism, and are remarkably different from that in PD.</P>