Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine最新文献

Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are a leading cause of occupational morbidity, particularly among desk-based professionals. Banking employees face increased risk due to prolonged screen time and poor ergonomics. Limited regional data exists on WMSDs in emerging cities like Akola, Maharashtra.

Objectives: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among banking employees in Akola, Western Vidarbha, and identify the key demographic, occupational, ergonomic, and lifestyle factors contributing to it.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 390 banking employees in Akola. Data were collected using a validated semistructured proforma, incorporating the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ).

Results: The prevalence of WMSDs was found to be 37%. Female employees reported significantly higher WMSD prevalence compared with men (49.2% vs. 29.1%). Prolonged sitting (>8 h/day) increased the odds of WMSDs (OR: 2.82; 95% CI: 1.36-5.86), repetitive motion tasks (OR: 19.5; 95% CI: 4.67-81.38), and extended computer usage (>8 h/day) (OR: 3.65; 95% CI: 1.37-9.73). Higher body mass index (BMI) and abnormal waist-to-hip ratios were also associated with increased odds of WMSDs.

Conclusions: The high prevalence of WMSDs among banking employees highlights the urgent need for ergonomic interventions, lifestyle modifications, and organizational support systems. Addressing these factors through targeted workplace modifications and health promotion strategies can reduce the burden of WMSDs, enhance employee well-being, and improve workplace productivity. Future research should focus on longitudinal studies to evaluate the long-term impact of these interventions.

Objective: The aim of the study is to know the effectiveness of postural training and core strengthening exercises along with interferential therapy on low back pain for household workers.

Background of the study: Pain in the lower back area that can be related to problems with the lumbar spine. This may be due to changing work environment, including the nature of long sitting work hours. Postural training helps develop strength, flexibility, and balance in the body, while core strengthening exercises improve balance, stability, and core muscle function. Interferential therapy, widely used for pain relief, muscle stimulation, increasing local blood flow, and reducing edema, has been extensively studied and proven effective in relieving pain associated with musculoskeletal conditions.

Methods and materials: This quasi-experimental study with a pre-and post-comparative design was conducted in the Faculty Physiotherapy Outpatient Department with 60 randomly selected women aged 35-50 years, clinically diagnosed with low back pain. The intervention lasted 12 weeks and excluded males below 35, recent low back fractures, hernia, and VAS scores below 4. Pre-tests using the VAS and QBPDS scales were conducted, followed by 4 days of interferential therapy (IFT) and 30 minutes/day of postural and core strengthening exercises with IFT for 12 weeks. Post-tests using the same scales were performed, and statistical analysis was conducted on the collected data to assess the intervention's effectiveness.

Result: On comparing Pre test and Post test within Group A and Group B on Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) Score and QBPDS score shows significant difference in the mean values at P ≤ 0.05.

Conclusion: The present study concluded that postural training exercise is more effective than conventional exercise. As the subject feels that postural training exercise improves functional activities and reduces low back pain. Which given good relief to the subject.

Background and aim: Majority of the healthcare workers (HCWs) globally have low back pain (LBP) at some point of time of their lives, resulting in activity limitation and sick leave. HCWs are exposed to the burden of long duty hours, poor posture, inadequate sleep hours, stress, etc., which ultimately leads to the occurrence of LBP. This study aimed to assess different factors influencing LBP among HCWs for early prevention and environmental modification.

Methods: This cross-sectional observational study was conducted in a tertiary center in Eastern India. The study population was all HCWs presently working in the author's institute. Self-administered questionnaire in English and Hindi was used via Google Forms for data collection. Hard copy of the form was used for the participants unable to fill online form. The association of different variables with other influencing variables was tested using non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis, Mann-Whitney, and Chi-square tests.

Result: Among 330 participants, the majority belonged to the age group of 30-39 years (47.6%), and the male-female ratio was 3:2. The significant association of pain intensity was found with gender (more in females, P = 0.001), body mass index (P = 0.001), job profile (less in doctors and paramedics, P = 0.021), comorbidity (maximum with hypothyroidism, P < 0.001), job satisfaction (less among much satisfied cases, P = 0.004), footwear (more pain among chappal wearers, P = 0.006), and vitamin D level (more pain in cases of low vitamin D level, P = 0.032).

Conclusion: This study identified an association of increased pain intensity with female gender, both low and high BMI, nursing job, less job satisfaction, improper footwear usage, etc. The chronicity was associated with higher age, BMI, lower or no exercise, comorbidity, and low serum vitamin D.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of congenital and perinatal infections, often presenting as asymptomatic at birth but later resulting in disabilities, and articular neurological disorders.

Aims: The current study aims to assess the prevalence of asymptomatic CMV infection among healthcare workers at Ilam Gynecology and Obstetrics Hospital in Iran, as well as investigate the potential nosocomial transmission of CMV infection and identify any potential risk factors associated with neonatal CMV infection.

Methods: This study involved 100 employees at Ilam Gynecology and Obstetrics Hospital who underwent blood and nasal swab CMV DNA testing using the real-time PCR technique.

Results: The average age of the patients was 33.87 years, ranging from 24 to 52 years. Among the 100 samples, CMV DNA was detected in three blood samples (3%) (ages 26, 31, and 38 years) and one swab sample (1%) (age 31). To confirm the molecular results, the PCR products were purified and sequenced, and one case was confirmed to be an asymptomatic carrier of CMV.

Conclusions: We did not find any significant correlation between CMV positivity and occupational groups. Despite the relatively low incidence of CMV DNA, especially in swab samples and the absence of evidence suggesting nosocomial transmission of CMV to the hospital staff or neonates, it is crucial to pay significant attention to primary CMV infection among healthcare workers.

Background: Resilience affects the occurrence of unsafe acts, influencing occupational incidents. Understanding this impact can aid in preventing such incidents through proactive measures.

Aim: This study aims to determine the relationship between cognitive resilience and cognitive failures, leading to unsafe acts.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 173 construction workers employed in a petrochemical sector in Asaluyeh, Iran. The Unsafe Act questionnaire and Connor-Davidson resilience scale were utilized to collect data. Correlation analysis was used to interpret the results. The Pearson correlation test and ANOVA were employed to explore the relationships between cognitive resilience, unsafe acts, and cognitive failures.

Results: The analysis revealed a high prevalence of unsafe acts, potentially compromising safety, alongside moderate levels of cognitive resilience among workers. A strong negative correlation was found between total resilience scores and unsafe acts (r = -0.701, P value < 0.001). Additionally, education level, near-miss history, and accidents, leading to absenteeism, were significantly related to cognitive resilience and unsafe acts (P value < 0.001).

Conclusion: Enhancing cognitive resilience in construction workers significantly reduces unsafe acts. Given the strong correlation, training programs to boost cognitive resilience should be implemented within organizational instructions to enhance job security and reduce unsafe acts.

Background: Sleep duration disorders impact the quality of life and energy expenditure in workers. However, there is a lack of understanding about the relationship between sleep duration and energy expenditure at work among motorcycle taxi drivers.

Aims: To analyze the relationship between sleep duration and energy expenditure at work in motorcycle taxi drivers.

Settings and design: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 296 male motorcycle taxi drivers from Rio Branco City, western Brazilian Amazon. Methods and Material: The motorcycle taxi driver reported the number of hours daily spent sleeping on a typical day during the week. Uncorrected and corrected energy expenditures of motorcycle taxi drivers during the working day were calculated according to the 2011 Physical Activity Compendium. The metabolic equivalent (MET) was corrected for the basal metabolic rate using the equation proposed by Harris and Benedict.

Statistical analysis: The relationship between sleep duration and energy expenditure at work was analyzed using fractional polynomial regression.

Results: The mean sleep duration in hours was 7.4 (SD: 1.4). There was a relationship between sleep duration and corrected energy expenditure at work, with a first-degree logarithmic transformation. The nonlinear relationship between sleep duration and uncorrected energy expenditure at work was a fractional polynomial with a power of -0.5 for the first degree.

Conclusions: The results suggest a nonlinear relationship between sleep duration and energy expenditure at work among motorcycle taxi drivers. Motorcycle taxi drivers with short sleep durations had high energy expenditures at work.

Background: Oncology units within specialized and high-stress hospital settings create significant emotional and psychological stress in nurses, which can affect their quality of work life (QWL). This study aimed to determine the correlation between QWL and caring nurse-patient interactions with burnout among oncology nurses.

Methods and materials: In this correlational study, 200 oncology nurses were selected using convenience sampling. Data collection scales included the valid and reliable Maslach Burnout Inventory, the caring nurse-patient interaction questionnaire, and Brook's Quality of Nursing Work Life Questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS₂₀ software.

Results: The results showed an inverse and significant linear relationship between QWL and caring nurse-patient interactions with burnout among oncology nurses. In addition, there was a direct and significant linear relationship between QWL and nurse-patient care interactions.

Conclusion: Considering the significant relationship between QWL and nurse-patient care interactions with a burnout in nurses, it seems that, according to the special mental atmosphere of oncology departments, it is necessary to have a written plan to reduce burnout in nurses.

Background: There is a global rise in cardiovascular diseases (CVD), particularly among the current generation of young adults, including the health professionals. Factors such as poor lifestyle choices, inadequate nutrition, sedentary work, and prolonged working hours contribute to occupational stress.

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of CVD risk factors in young healthcare workers aged 25-40 and assess their 10-year CVD risk using the QRISK 3 prediction algorithm.

Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 248 health workers aged 25-40 years in a tertiary care hospital in Pondicherry. Data collected include questionnaire responses for the QRISK 3 algorithm, weight, height, and two SBP readings on two different days, and blood samples for HDL-c, Fasting glucose, and Total cholesterol level.

Result: Nearly 26.6% of the participants had high body mass index (BMI), 5.24% had diabetes mellitus, 16.12% had hypertension, 25.4% were found with hyperlipidemia, 6.3% had a history of light smoking, and 47.5% had a family history of CVD. Most of the risk factors except hypertension and low HDL-c showed female preponderance. Despite the high prevalence, the mean QRISK score of a 10-year risk of getting CVD among young healthcare workers is less, which is only 1.3%.

Conclusion: Though the prevalence of major risk factors is high among healthcare workers other risk factors that the QRISK 3 algorithm takes into consideration were very low among the participants. The higher prevalence of metabolic risk factors emphasizes the need for the change in lifestyle behaviors of participants.

Introduction: The rapid growth in the food delivery industry, driven by changing consumer habits and technology, has created job opportunities for gig riders, including food delivery riders.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and burnout and assess the associated factors among app-based food delivery riders in Tamil Nadu.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 425 app-based male food delivery riders in Tamil Nadu. The data were collected from June to July 2023 using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screener (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), and Oldenburg Inventory Burnout (OLBI) Scale to estimate the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and burnout, respectively.

Results: The prevalence of low/medium and high burnout was 89.2% and 10.8%, respectively; the prevalence of moderate and moderate-severe/severe anxiety was 23.7% and 12.5%, respectively; and the prevalence of moderate and moderate-severe/severe depression was 26.8% and 16.2%, respectively. The multivariate logistic regression showed that monthly income (AOR 2.57) and severe depression (AOR 2.87) are significantly associated with burnout. Monthly income (AOR 3.18), burnout (AOR 2.52), and severe depression (AOR 7.35) are significantly associated with anxiety. Similarly, dehydration (AOR 3.16), place of work (AOR 3.18), burnout (AOR 2.57), and severe anxiety (AOR 6.87) are significantly associated with depression.

Conclusions: The study underscores the urgent need for industry-wide interventions and support strategies to address the mental well-being of food delivery riders.