The Journal of the Society of Occupational Medicine最新文献

The recent series of railway accidents raised questions about the safety of British Railways. We have studied trends in accidents to railway staff over a 33-year period, 1954-86, which time has covered the pre- and post-modernization of the railways, in conjunction with large reductions in both staffing and traffic volume. The Railway Inspectorate, which has the duty of investigating and reporting on accidents occurring on railway premises, defines three kinds of accident: train, movement and non-movement. The numbers of railway staff killed and injured in each kind of accident have been studied in relation to the number of staff employed and train-miles run. Trends in the three accident rates derived thereby show quite different patterns: for most of the period under study, train accident rates have shown a linear increase and movement accident rates a linear decrease, whilst non-movement accidents exhibited no particular trend at all. In the last 5 years, however, both movement and non-movement accident rates have decreased sharply, whilst train accident rates have increased above the generally rising trend. Explanations for some of these trends and changes are suggested, but the reasons for others remain obscure.

Eighteen Royal Air Force dental laboratory technicians (DLTs) and 69 Service controls matched for age, sex and smoking status were compared by means of incidence rates of GP consultation for respiratory, and all other, illness. By retrospectively calculating for each individual the time served (man-years at risk) at the RAF Station concerned, together with the number of consultations that fell into each of the study categories, it was possible to produce an incidence rate, per man-year at risk, of consultations for both study and control groups. By calculating a relative risk (RR) it was observed that DLTs were nearly three times (RR = 2.95. CI 1.69-5.13), more likely to attend their GP with respiratory problems than members of the control group, and 1.7 times (RR = 1.71. CI 0.98-3.01) more likely to attend their GP with other problems. Comparison of the numbers of individuals continuing to use bronchodilator therapy in each of the two groups suggested that DLTs have a higher prevalence of conditions that require this form of therapy as treatment.

Fifty-seven shift workers were matched for age, cigarette smoking and blue-collar/white-collar status against day worker controls. The recognised coronary heart disease risk factors, blood pressure, body mass index, random plasma cholesterol and resting electrocardiograms were compared between both groups. None of these investigations gave a statistically significant difference between the two groups. The study supports the conclusion of previous morbidity and mortality studies which have failed to show any conclusive evidence of an adverse effect of shift working on the cardiovascular system.

In a prospective study 30 patients with minor industrial wounds were treated with DuoDERM Bordered. Medical aspects, patient comfort and the possibility of continuing activities of daily life are described in this report.

A survey of occupational physicians of the Food Industry Medical Officers Group was undertaken to establish details of medical kits supplied by their organizations to business travellers. The most common approach was an in-house medical kit with instructions emphasizing self treatment of the common ailments of travellers such as motion sickness, sleeplessness, diarrhoea, indigestion and headaches. The majority of kits included a small supply of needles, syringes, IV cannulae etc either in a commercial 'Aids Kit' or as inhouse supplies. Antimalarials were provided either as a standard kit item or as required. About half provided antibiotics for the self treatment of infections. Very few provided a telephone number for use in the event of medical emergencies. A standard medical kit specification is proposed.

Forty-five workers exposed to the solvents xylene and toluene in varnishing processes in a major heavy electrical industry were studied to find the effect of this exposure on different parameters of behaviour. These were immediate and delayed memory, visual ability, visual learning and psychomotor ability. The findings were compared with those from subjects who were not exposed. Immediate memory and delayed memory were affected among both directly and indirectly exposed workers as compared with those in the controls which remained unaffected. Visual intelligence and memory were most affected by exposure. Psychomotor ability was significantly affected among the directly exposed workers, as compared with the occasionally exposed group which did not show any significant difference from the control workers.