Investigating air quality status and air pollutant trends over the Metropolitan Area of Tehran, Iran over the past decade between 2005 and 2014

Studies on the trend of air pollution in Tehran, Iran, as one of the most polluted metropolis in the world are scant, and today Tehran is known for its high levels of air pollutants. In this study, the trend of air pollution concentration was evaluated over the past 10 years (2004-2015). The data were collected from 22 stations of the Air Quality Control Company. Daily concentrations of CO, NO₂, SO₂, O₃, PM₁₀ were analyzed using SPSS 16 based on the statistical method, repeated measures, and intra-group test to determine the pattern of each pollutant changes. As a result of the 22 air pollution monitoring stations, NO₂ and SO₂ concentrations have been increasing over the period of 10 years. The highest anomaly is related to SO₂. The CO concentrations represent a descending pattern over the period, although there was a slight increase in 2013 and 2014. The O₃ concentrations declined in the following years. The average concentration of PM₁₀ has been rising during the period. Also we evaluated changes of each pollutant in different months and calculated the number of clean, healthy, unhealthy days for sensitive, unhealthy, very unhealthy, and dangerous groups. The study findings illustrated the necessity for larger investment in air pollution abatement. Overall, trends have been progressed to worsening, the number of healthy days has been declined and the number of unhealthy days has been increased in recent years.

Investigating air quality status and air pollutant trends over the Metropolitan Area of Tehran, Iran over the past decade between 2005 and 2014

Studies on the trend of air pollution in Tehran, Iran, as one of the most polluted metropolis in the world are scant, and today Tehran is known for its high levels of air pollutants. In this study, the trend of air pollution concentration was evaluated over the past 10 years (2004-2015). The data were collected from 22 stations of the Air Quality Control Company. Daily concentrations of CO, NO₂, SO₂, O₃, PM₁₀ were analyzed using SPSS 16 based on the statistical method, repeated measures, and intra-group test to determine the pattern of each pollutant changes. As a result of the 22 air pollution monitoring stations, NO₂ and SO₂ concentrations have been increasing over the period of 10 years. The highest anomaly is related to SO₂. The CO concentrations represent a descending pattern over the period, although there was a slight increase in 2013 and 2014. The O₃ concentrations declined in the following years. The average concentration of PM₁₀ has been rising during the period. Also we evaluated changes of each pollutant in different months and calculated the number of clean, healthy, unhealthy days for sensitive, unhealthy, very unhealthy, and dangerous groups. The study findings illustrated the necessity for larger investment in air pollution abatement. Overall, trends have been progressed to worsening, the number of healthy days has been declined and the number of unhealthy days has been increased in recent years.

Air pollution: the knowledge and ideas of students in Tehran-Iran, and a comparison with other countries

Study of students' knowledge about air pollution can help authorities to have better imagination of this critical environmental problem. This research examines guidance school and high school students' ideas about air pollution and the results may be useful for the respective authorities to improve cultural and educational aspects of next generation. In this cross-sectional study, a closed questionnaire was used to examine knowledge and ideas of 2140 randomly selected school students of Tehran-Iran about composition of unpolluted air, air pollution and its causes and consequences. Cognitive scores were also calculated. Outcomes were compared with results of similar researches in Australia, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. While a student's 'cognitive score' could range from -16 to +16, Iranian students' mean cognitive score was equal to +2.97. There was not significant statistical difference between girls and boys [P=0.32]. In response to question "most common gas in unpolluted air" nitrogen was mentioned by only 23.7%, While 45.1% of students mentioned oxygen. In general, student's knowledge was not acceptable and there were some misconceptions such as "supposing oxygen as the most prevalent gas in unpolluted air". The findings of this survey indicate that, this important stratum of society of Iran have been received no sufficient and efficient education and sensitization on this matter

Global warming: knowledge and views of Iranian students

Study of students' knowledge about global warming can help authorities to have better imagination of this critical environmental problem. This research examines high school students' ideas about greenhouse effect and the results may be useful for the respective authorities to improve cultural and educational aspects of next generation. In this cross-sectional study, a 42 question questionnaire with mix of open and closed questions was used to evaluate high school students' view about the mechanism, consequences, causes and cures of global warming. To assess students' knowledge, cognitive score was also calculated. 1035 students were randomly selected from 19 educational districts of Tehran. Sampling method was multi stage. Only 5.1% of the students could explain greenhouse effect correctly and completely. 88.8% and 71.2% respectively believed "if the greenhouse effect gets bigger the Earth will get hotter" and "incidence of more skin cancers is a consequence of global warming". 69.6% and 68.8% respectively thought "the greenhouse effect is made worse by too much carbon dioxide" and "presence of ozone holes is a cause of greenhouse effect". 68.4% believed "not using cars so much is a cure for global warming". While a student's 'cognitive score' could range from -36 to +36, Students' mean cognitive score was equal to +1.64. Mean cognitive score of male students and grade 2 and 3 students was respectively higher than female ones [P<0.01] and grade 1 students [P<0.001] but there was no statistically significant difference between students of different regions [P>0.05]. In general, students' knowledge about global warming was not acceptable and there were some misconceptions in the students' mind, such as supposing ozone holes as a cause and more skin cancer as a consequence of global warming. The Findings of this survey indicate that, this important stratum of society have been received no sufficient and efficient education and sensitization on this matter

Knowledge and practice assessment of workers in a pharmaceutical company about prevention of coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease is one of the most common reasons of death around the world. Also, according to previous studies, the incidence of coronary artery disease is rapidly increasing in developing countries such as Iran. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge and practice of pharmaceutical company workers towards the prevention of cardiovascular disease. In this cross sectional study that was conducted in Tehran, 1223 workers of a pharmaceutical company were enrolled. Data was collected using a questionnaire that assessed the level of knowledge and practice of the participants towards coronary artery disease. Regression analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between study variables and the workers knowledge level. The results of this study showed that 49% of the workers were in a good level of knowledge and according to the regression analysis, the female gender, age above 28, education level higher than high school diploma, body mass index above 25 kilograms per square meters, history of hyperlipidemia, history of diabetes, history of hypertension, history of myocardial infarction, daily activity and exercise, were significantly related to a good knowledge towards coronary artery disease. In addition, the mean score of the participants' performance in preventing coronary artery disease was 4.66 out of 9. The results of this study showed that increasing level of knowledge of labors in order to prevent missing specialized work force, leads to imposition of health costs to the industry and the labor society

[Occupational stress and influencing factors, in medical residents of one of the educational hospitals of Tehran University of Medical Sciences]

Occupational stress is one of the most common hazards in workplaces and leads to different physical, mental, and behavioral outcomes and complications. Medical residents, due to the nature and characteristics of their job, confront various stressors. This study has been designed in order to identify the frequency of occupational stress in medical residents and factors influencing it. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 305 residents with various specialties in Rasoul-e-Akram Hospital on spring 1389. For measuring the degree of stress, we used Osipow occupational stress inventory. T-test, Chi-Square, ANOVA and Logistic regression were used to evaluate associations. Response rate was 87%. Most of the residents had moderate stress. Average score of total stress was 147.06 from 250. The most frequent stressor was work overload [31.05 from 50] and responsibility [29.55 from 50]. Stress significantly increased with shift work [OR=4.591, CI=1.31-16.13, p=0.017], surgery [OR=3.769, CI=2.10-6.76, p=0.001] and also correlated with lower rest time [OR=1.962, CI=1.12-4.08, p=0.048] and higher weekly work hours [OR=1.242, CI=1.10-2.34, p=0.050]. The most frequent stressors were work overload and responsibility, so it is recommended that in order to reduce stress, work hours must be limited and the residents must be strongly supported. In addition, some education and consultation for specialty choice must be given to the physicians

[Factors affecting return to work after lumbar disc herniation surgery]

The disability caused by the lower back pain is one of the leading factors contributing to work absenteeism. This disability which is usually due to spinal disc herniation prevents an employee from doing his/her daily job, thus creating numerous destructive socioeconomic consequences for him/her as well as the society. The goal of this study is to determine the patients return-to-work rate after undergoing the lumbar disc herniation surgery and to study the related factors. This study was a cross sectional study. All patients suffered from lumber discetomy from 2005 to 2009 at two TUMS [Tehran University of Medical Sciences] educational hospitals were included in this study. Required data about the patients were gathered from the hospital documents, and the return-to-work rate was evaluated by following up on patients via phone calls. Chi-square and T tests were used for evaluation of quantitative and qualitative variables, respectively. From 603 final participants, at least 6 month after the surgery, 504 cases [83.6%] returned to work. From these 504 cases, 364 patients [72.2%] returned full time, and 140 patients [27.8%] returned part time. A multivariate regression analysis showed that the return-to-work rate has a strong correlation with age, sex, educational level, body mass index, positive expectation from the surgery before doing it, doctor's encouragement, hospitalization time, manual work, and job satisfaction [p<0.05]; however, it had no significant correlation with marriage status, income level, impairment request, insurance coverage, peer support, and the work category with respect to physical labor demand [p>0.05]. Our findings show the importance of work related and psychological factors as the determinants of the return-to-work rate after the lumbar disc surgery. From this study, it is apparent that appropriate strategies and team work [between the patient, the surgeon, the rehabilitation specialist, the occupational medicine specialist, and the employer] would elevate the job satisfaction and positive expectations about the surgery, and therefore, they encourage the patient to return to work at a suitable time which in turn, may increase the total return-to-work rate

Hearing impairment due to cigarette smoking and simultaneous exposure to occupational noise

Noise is the most common hazard in the workplace and noise induced hearing loss considered to be the most common occupational disease as well. Cigarette smoking, in some studies, has been known to induce hearing loss. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of contemporary exposure to occupational noise and cigarette smoking on hearing. 478 assembly workers of an automobile plant which were exposed to the noise more than TLV [threshold limit value] level included in this study. After considering the exclusion criteria, all participants according to the smoking status were divided in smoker and nonsmoker groups and compared for hearing impairment. Hearing impairment in this study was assessed with the offered method of American Academy of Otolaryngology [AAO]. Of 478 assembly workers, 225 persons were smokers and others non smokers. Prevalence of hearing impairment in smokers was significantly higher [p<0.001]. Hearing impairment had a significant relation with smoking status even after adjusting for cofounders like age and duration of work [OR=8.23, 95% CI=3.63-18.66]. The results of this study suggested that cigarette smokers had more hearing impairment than non smokers. According to these results we concluded that in working environments, especially in noisy ones, workers must be encouraged to quit smoking and regular audiometric tests, especially for smokers, must be applied. We must consider not only the noise, but indeed all effective elements of hearing impairment in working environment that could compromise the hearing

Respiratory complaints and spirometric parameters in tile and ceramic factory workers

Respiratory disorders are among the most common occupational diseases. Tile and ceramic industry is quite popular in Iran and workers in this industry are exposed to harmful dust particles affecting their respiratory system. This study was conducted in a tile and ceramic factory. The study group consisted of factory workers of the production units; whereas, the control group included the executive employees of the factory. A questionnaire was designed covering all the required data. There were a total of 411 workers. After considering the exclusion criteria, 243 workers in the study group were compared with 168 controls in terms of their respiratory status. Respiratory complaints were significantly higher in the study group compared to controls [p=0.023]. Frequency of abnormal spirometric findings was significantly higher in the study group [p<0.001]. A significant correlation was found between the occupational exposure to tile and ceramic dust and abnormal spirometric findings after adjusting for age, duration of employment and smoking habits [p<0.05]. Our study results demonstrated that occupational exposure to ceramic and tile dust can harm workers' respiratory system. Therefore, it is recommended to diminish workers' exposure to tile dust by proper implementation of respiratory protection programs. Also, filling out the standard respiratory questionnaire and performing the pulmonary function tests are advised for workers in their periodic examination programs