Symptoms and musculoskeletal diseases in hospital nurses and in a group of university employees: a cross-sectional study

Background. Most studies have shown that nurses have a higher risk of developing musculoskeletal symptoms compared with other occupational groups. Aim. A cross-sectional study was performed to gain more insight into the prevalence rates of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in nurses. Methods. The presence of musculoskeletal symptoms was revealed by personal interviews in a sample of 177 hospital nurses and in a reference group of 185 university employees. Musculoskeletal diseases were based on radiological examinations in all subjects. Results. Lower back pain (61% vs 42.2%) was the most frequently reported symptom, followed by neck pain (48.6% vs 38.4%) and shoulder pain (36.7% vs 25.9%), with a significantly higher prevalence in nurses. Women had about a 2-fold risk of upper limb region and neck pain compared with men. The most common abnormal findings on radiological examinations were disc herniations (n?=?40). Conclusions. Nurses showed a significantly higher risk of MSDs. Prevalence rates in nurses increased significantly with age. Musculoskeletal symptoms were also common in university employees. This suggests the need for effective intervention strategies involving workers’ active participation, in order to improve the process and organization of work and promote a positive psychosocial work environment.     

Management practices as antecedents of safety culture within the trucking industry: similarities and differences by hierarchical level

PROBLEM: A homogeneous perception of safety is important for the achievement of a strong safety culture; however, employees may differ in their safety perceptions, depending on their position and/or hierarchical level within the organization. Moreover, there is limited information on the antecedents of safety culture. This study examines how safety training, driver scheduling autonomy, opportunity for safety input, and management commitment to safety influence individuals' perceptions of safety culture. METHOD: Data for this study were drawn from 116 trucking firms, stratified by three safety performance levels. The data were collected from drivers (lowest hierarchical level), dispatchers (medium hierarchical level), and safety directors (highest hierarchical level), regarding their perceptions of their respective corporate safety cultures. Perceptions of safety culture were analyzed through a linear regression using dummy variables to differentiate among the three hierarchical groups. The resulting model allowed for examination of the specific antecedents of safety culture for the three employee groups and the extent to which the hierarchical groups were in agreement with each other. RESULTS: Driver fatigue training, driver opportunity for safety input, and top management commitment to safety were perceived to be integral determinants of safety culture in all three groups. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: Trucking firms seeking to strengthen employees' perceptions of safety culture might begin by improving these safety management practices while appreciating that they may have a different impact depending on the employee's hierarchical position (e.g., drivers' perceptions of safety culture are more influenced by top management commitment and driver fatigue training). A fourth safety practice examined, driver scheduling autonomy, was not found to be instrumental in shaping safety culture for any of the three hierarchical levels. Consistent with previous research, implementation of stronger safety cultures should result in fewer accidents.     

Phytotoxicity,cytotoxicity, and in vivo antifungal efficacy of chitosan nanobiocomposites on prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Chitosan (CS) nanosystems have potential applications for the control of microorganisms in the medical, environmental, and agrifood fields. In vivo...     

Biological activity in metal-contaminated calcareous agricultural soils: the role of the organic matter composition and the particle size distribution

Organic matter (OM) plays a key role in microbial response to soil metal contamination, yet little is known about how the composition of the OM affects this response in Mediterranean calcareous agricultural soils. A set of Mediterranean soils, with different contents and compositions of OM and carbonate and fine mineral fractions, was spiked with a mixture of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn and incubated for 12 months for aging. Microbial (Biolog Ecoplates) and enzyme activities (dehydrogenase, DHA; β-galactosidase, BGAL; phosphatase, PHOS; and urease, URE) were assessed and related to metal availability and soil physicochemical parameters. All enzyme activities decreased significantly with metal contamination: 36–68 % (DHA), 24–85 % (BGAL), 22–72 % (PHOS), and 14–84 % (URE) inhibitions. Similarly, catabolic activity was negatively affected, especially phenol catabolism (～86 % compared to 25–55 % inhibition for the rest of the substrates). Catabolic and DHA activities were negatively correlated with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA)-extractable Cd and Pb, but positively with CaCl₂, NaNO₃, and DTPA-extractable Cu and Zn. Soluble OM (water- and hot-water-soluble organic C) was positively related to enzyme and catabolic activities. Recalcitrant OM and fine mineral fractions were positively related to BGAL and PHOS. Conversely, catabolic activity was negatively related to clay and positively to silt and labile OM. Results indicate that the microbial response to metal contamination is highly affected by texture and OM composition.     

Newborns and low to moderate prenatal environmental lead exposure: might fathers be the key?

This study is part of the BioMadrid Project, a bio-monitoring study designed to assess pollutants in the environment surrounding children born in the Madrid region. Our aim in this report is to evaluate the association between prenatal lead exposure and fetal development using three biological samples (maternal and paternal blood lead at around 34 weeks of gestation as well as cord blood lead levels), three biomarkers of effect in cord blood peripheral lymphocytes (micronucleus in binucleated cells, nucleoplasmic bridges, and nuclear buds), and different anthropometrical characteristics at birth. Maternal and cord blood lead were not associated with newborn measurements or genotoxicity biomarkers. In contrast, increases in father blood lead were coupled with lower weight (mean difference (MD), ?110.8 g; 95 % confidence intervals (95%CI), ?235.6 to 6.00; p?<?0.10) and shorter abdominal (MD, ?0.81 cm; 95%CI, ?1.64 to 0.00; p?<?0.05) and cephalic (MD, ?0.32 cm; 95%CI, ?0.65 to 0.00; p?<?0.05) circumferences at birth as well as with the presence of nucleoplasmic bridges (odds ratio, 1.03; 95%CI, 1.00 to 1.06; p?<?0.05) and nuclear buds (odds ratio, 1.02; 95%CI, 0.99 to 1.04; p?<?0.10). These associations were mainly confined to female babies, in whom paternal lead was also inversely associated with length. Our results support the hypothesis that paternal lead exposure may be affecting the development of newborns.     

Sorption and photodegradation of chlorpyrifos on riparian and aquatic macrophytes

Surface water bodies may become contaminated via spray drift following pesticide application. In this investigation, the photodegradation and sorption of chlorpyrifos was studied in four riparian macrophytes representative of Mediterranean flora (Phragmites australis, Iris pseudacorus, Equisetum pratense and Typha latifolia). The results of experiments with both the active ingredient and the formulation DURSBAN 48® EC confirm the ability of these species to interact with chemicals such as chlorpyrifos. The maximum sorption of chlorpyrifos at equilibrium was observed in Phragmites australis (22%). And, the maximum instantaneous sorption of chlorpyrifos was observed in the dried biomass of Phragmites australis (49%). The epicuticular waxes present on leaves influence photodegradation processes, resulting in a decrease in chlorpyrifos persistence depending on the nature of the extract. The half-life of chlorpyrifos residues in leaf waxes decreased from 34 to 99 minutes when irradiated.     

Sorption and desorption of sulfentrazone in Brazilian soils

This study was undertaken to obtain information about the behavior of sulfentrazone in soil by evaluating the sorption and desorption of the herbicide in different Brazilian soils. Batch equilibrium method was used and the samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography. Based on the results obtained from the values of Freundlich constants (Kf), we determined the order of sorption (Haplic Planosol < Red-Yellow Latosol < Red Argisol < Humic Cambisol < Regolitic Neosol) and desorption (Regolitic Neosol < Red Argisol < Humic Cambisol < Haplic Planosol < Red-Yellow Latosol) of sulfentrazone in the soils. The process of pesticide sorption in soils was dependent on the levels of organic matter and clay, while desorption was influenced by the organic matter content and soil pH. Thus, the use of sulfentrazone in soils with low clay content and organic matter (low sorption) increases the probability of contaminating future crops.     

Assessing dam implementation impact on threatened carnivores: the case of Alqueva in SE Portugal

Large dam construction in water deficient areas is a management decision often controversial. Besides providing water storage, economical benefits, and a source of renewable energy, the construction and flooding caused by large dams cause disruptions in natural systems. We monitored the pre- and post-Alqueva dam impacts on the threatened carnivore species (polecat, otter, wildcat and Iberian lynx) populations in SE Portugal, and assessed which factors mostly contribute to post-dam distribution. Major short term impacts of large dams are: (1) increase in accessibility and human presence; (2) movement of heavy machinery and dam-workers; (3) deforestation with habitat loss and fragmentation; (4) change from lotic to lentic system; (5) lower prey availability and harsher capture; and (6) changes in land use adjacent to the reservoir. Thus, the response to those impacts can be predicted as a decline of polecat, wildcat and lynx distribution ranges, and a recovery of the otter from the severe short term impacts. Our results corroborate this hypothesis for all the species, especially during deforestation/early flooding. Otter's distribution range increased in the phase of greater impact, with a subsequent decrease with flooding. Our results suggest carnivores used "escape" areas with favourable habitat and prey conditions, however, the areas with higher probability of species presence decreased by two fold showing a drastic range reduction. To ensure populations' survival of these charismatic threatened carnivore populations of Mediterranean landscapes of south-east Portugal, we propose continuing the monitoring program and the development of a conservation program for the subsisting areas of optimal and suboptimal habitats.     

Monitoring dioxins and furans in the vicinity of an old municipal waste incinerator after pronounced reductions of the atmospheric emissions

In order to get an overall picture of the environmental impact of an old municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) from S. Adrià del Besòs (Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain), a monitoring program addressed at determining the levels of a number of pollutants in the vicinity of the facility was initiated in 1998. In March 1999, an adaptation was carried out due to EU legislation on pollutant emissions from the stack. As a result, emissions of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs) were notably reduced, and a significant (30%) decrease was found in the levels of PCDD/F in herbage samples collected in the vicinity of the MSWI. In March 2001, herbage samples were collected at the same sampling points and the PCDD/F levels measured again. The current PCDD/F concentrations range from 0.23 to 1.43 ng I-TEQ kg(-1) (dry matter), with median and mean values of 0.58 and 0.66 ng I-TEQ kg(-1) (dry matter), respectively, while in the 2000 survey the PCDD/F concentrations ranged from 0.22 to 1.20 ng I-TEQ kg(-1) (dry matter), with median and mean values of 0.57 and 0.61 ng I-TEQ kg(-1) (dry matter), respectively. Although the current PCDD/F concentrations in herbage samples are comparable to those found in recent surveys carried out in various places of Catalonia, an exhaustive evaluation of the data, including principal component analysis, indicates that other emission sources of PCDD/Fs also have a notable environmental impact on the area under direct influence of the MSWI.     

Comparison of waste prevention behaviors among three Japanese megacity regions in the context of local measures and socio-demographics

Waste prevention behaviors (WPBs) should be investigated separately from recycling behaviors and analyzed in the context of local policies and measures. Previous studies on WPBs have been mainly conducted in the USA and Europe (mainly in the UK), and studies in Japan have remained very limited to date. Moreover, the effects of socio-demographic factors have been rarely described correctly based on appropriate large sampling. In this study, we conducted an on-line questionnaire survey and obtained 8000 respondents in three megacity regions (Tokyo, Osaka, and Aichi) in Japan. Among these three regions, Osaka respondents showed significantly lower practice rates in nine of 18 WPBs. Particularly in My-bag behavior, the charging of plastic shopping bags strongly affects the practice rate. As shown in the results, local policies and measures affect WPBs. Based on the practice rates, latent four factors were extracted by factor analysis. Multiple regression analysis revealed that gender and age significantly affect WPB factors before local policy effects.