Identifying and Ranking Factors Influencing Job Stress Among Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Employees in Phase 14 of South Pars: A Cross Sectional Study in South of Iran

The present paper aims at identifying and ranking the factors affecting job stress of HSE employees in the phase 14 of the South Pars (a petroleum company in south of Iran). In this cross sectional study, all HSE employees in one of the phases in south pars of Iran (the phase 14) including 150 employees were investigated in 2015. The data were collected using a questionnaire and measuring some environmental and occupational factors such as sound and chemical pollution. The validity of the questionnaire was approved by opinion of the 10 expert persons in this field (Content Validity Index .85%) and the reliability of the questionnaire was approved by Cronbach Alpha equal to 0.70. At present study the one sample T test indicated that the environmental and managerial factors affect job stress of the HSE employees. Among the environmental factors, long working hours, poisonous materials risks, air pollution, heat and moisture and air pollution mostly affect job stress, respectively. On the other hand among the managerial factors, job security, lack of meritocracy, not in time payment and prejudice in salary affect job stress the most, respectively. As the results of this study, respect to environmental and occupational factors according to employees’ viewpoint in each industry is too important.

Protective effects of gadolinum chloride on pneumotoxic effects of styrene in rat

Objective: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the protective effects of gadolinum on pneumotoxic effects of styrene in rats as an experimental model

Materials and Methods: In this experimental study a total number of 40 adult male Sprague Dawley rats that weighed 200 +/- 13 g were randomly divided into five groups: i. styrene [St, N=10], ii. styrene+gadolinium chloride [GdCl[3], N=10], iii. control [N=10], iv. GdCl[3][N=5] and v. normal saline [Nor.Sal, as a solvent of GdCl[3], N=5]. Normal saline, as a sham control group, was otherwise treated identically. Rats from the experimental groups were exposed to St in an exposure chamber for 6 days/week, 4 hours/day for up to 3 weeks. At the end of the experiment, rats from all groups were killed by deep anesthesia. Their lungs were removed, then fixed in formalin and weighed. Tissue samples were processed routinely and sections stained by the hematoxylin and eosin [H andE] and periodic acid Schiff [PAS] methods. We measured the thicknesses of the respiratory epithelia and interalveolar septa. Obtained data were analyzed by ANOVA, the Tukey test and the paired t test

Results: Shedding of apical cytoplasm in the bronchiole was a prominent feature of the St group. PAS staining revealed histochemical changes in goblet cells in the epithelium of the St group. While there were no significant changes in lung weights and respiratory epithelial thicknesses between all studied groups, statistical analysis showed a significant alteration in the thickness of interalveolar septa in the St and St+GdCl[3] group compared to the control groups [P<0.001]

Conclusion: Styrene induced structural and histochemical changes in bronchiole, interalveolar septa and alveolar organization in the rats' lungs. Gadolinium appeared to partially reduce the toxic effects of styrene on the lungs

Noise pollution in zahedan and residents' knowledge about noise pollution

Noise is considered one of the most pervasive and harmful agents in crowded cities. The aim of this study was to determine the exposure rate to noise pollution of residents on the main streets of Zahedan city in southeastern Iran and the knowledge and attitudes of these residents concerning noise. Noise was measured for three consecutive weeks in the October-November areas of the city in 31 test locations, using a CEL-440 Classic sound level meter and analyzer during the noisiest hours of the day [07:00 to 22:00]. Using a validated questionnaire, data were collected from 400 subjects to estimate their knowledges and attitudes about noise pollution. The average noise level in the main city streets during the day was 75 +/- 2.96 dB. The mean age of participants was 31.9 +/- 11 years. Approximately 82.3% of the subjects tested reported that street noise pollution was too high, and 48% suggested that the best way to decrease city noise pollution was to enhance people's knowledge of the problem. Furthermore, 65.8% of the subjects stated that street noise is a cause of stress. There was a significant association between noise levels and subjects' sleepiness [P < 0.05]. In addition, noise pollution in Zahedan city streets was found to be higher than standard levels. It was concluded that appropriate traffic management and a health promotion program are essential for increasing the residents' understanding about how to improve the current noise pollution situation

Evaluation of upper limb musculoskeletal loads due to posture, repetition, and force by rapid upper limb assessment in a textile factory

In the last 15 or 20 years, upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders have been recognized as a cause of major medical problems among industrial workers. The aim of this study was conducted to assess risk factors for upper limb musculoskeletal disorders on workers performing various tasks in a textile factory. Ergonomic interventions and solutions may be developed on the basis of the assessment results. Rapid Upper Limb Assessment [RULA] was used to evaluate upper limb musculoskeletal loads, and the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire [NMQ] was used to measure the prevalence of upper limb disorders in workers at the Qaem Shahr textile factory. A target population sample included 566 subjects [404 males [71.4%] aged 23-51 years, mean age 32.9 [SD = 6.3 years]; 161 females [28.6%] aged 21-37 years, mean age 25.6 [SD = 8.6 years]]. Prevalence data on disorders to the upper arms, lower arms, wrists, neck, trunk, and legs were obtained in 497 [87.8%], 255 [45.1%], 318 [56.2%], 383 [67.7%], 436 [77%], and 163 [28.8%] workers, respectively. Recommended action as a result of the assessment varied according to prevalence and severity of the disorders. Tasks involving spinning, direct wrapping, pirn wrapping, Gard machine operating, yarn combing, weaving, and fold counting were revealed to be the most hazardous. The results of the NMQ confirmed the results of the RULA. Preventive measures at the structural, organizational, and personnel levels must be taken for the safety of industrial workers performing tasks categorized as action levels 2-4 in this study. RULA is a useful and practical tool for evaluation of musculoskeletal disorders resulting from working in a textile factory

Histological study of the toxic effects of solder fumes on spermatogenesis in rats

Toxic fumes generated during the soldering process contain various contaminants released at sufficient rates to cause both short- and long-term health problems. Studies have shown that these fumes change the quality and quantity of semen fluid in exposed workers. The aim of the present study was to determine the potentially toxic effects of solder fumes on spermatogenesis in seminiferous tubules of rats as an experimental model, with conditioned media in an exposed chamber. A total number of 48 male Sprague Dawley adult rats were randomly divided into experimental [n=30] and control [n=18] groups. Based on exposure time, each group was further subdivided into two, four and six subgroups. Rats in the experimental groups were exposed to solder fumes in an exposure chamber for one hour/ day. The concentrations of fumes [formaldehyde, stanurn [Sn] and lead [Pb]] were measured by a standard method via atomic absorption and spectrophotometry. According to a timetable, under deep anesthesia, the rats of both experimental and control subgroups were killed. After fixation of testes, specimens were weighed and routinely processed. Paraffin sections were stained by hematoxylin and eosin. Spermiogenesis index was calculated and data analyzed by Mann Whitney NPAR test. Analysis of air samples in the exposure chamber showed the following fume concentrations: 0.193 mg/m[3] for formaldehyde, 0.35 mg/m[3] for Sn and 3 mg/m[3] for Pb. Although there was no significant difference in testes weight between control and experimental subgroups, there was only a significant difference in spermiogenesis index between the six week experimental and control subgroups [p<0.02]. The results of this study showed that solder fumes can change the spermiogenesis index in experimental groups in a time dependent manner

Survey of vibration exposure and musculoskeletal disorder of Zahedan city tractor drivers by Nordics questionnaire

Exposure to vibration is the cause of some occupational injuries and diseases. Objective of this study was determination of vibration exposure of tractor drivers and assessment of musculoskeletal disorder. This cross-sectional and descriptive- analytical study was administrated to 95 tractor drivers to census method and measuring induced vibration to the drivers was done in three axis, x, y, and z in tractors with load [10000 liter water], without load, with 10 km/h speed, by the vibration meter instrument "Sevantek". The information related to musculoskeletal disorder was collected by using Nordic questionnaire. Data from both parts was analyzed by using SPSS. In the over load tractor group and with velocity vibration 10km/h, 50% of workers were in the range of reduced comfort boundary, 39.3% in the range of fatigue decreased proficiency boundary and 10.7% in over exposure limit. This results were in the without load tractor group and with the same velocity, 23.8% of people were in the range of reduced comfort boundary, 42.9% in the range of fatigue decreased proficiency boundary and 33.3% in the range of over exposure limit and waist with 56.8% had the greatest rate of pain and ankle with 9.5% had the least amount of pain rate. Using of many tractors in city to displace water and other applications, paying attention to the health of drivers and checking the periodically, is needed

[Risk perception, knowledge and safety attitude and hearing protector use in petrochemical industry workers]

Hearing protectors [HP] are widely employed as the only measure against noise exposure. However, it is well known that unless do workers wear HP continuously, its efficacy will be very low. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of risk perception, knowledge and safety attitude on hearing protection use in petrochemical industry's workers. In this cross-sectional study a structural questionnaire was administrated to 236 randomly selected workers in Iranian petrochemical industry who had been to 85 dBA noise and some influencing factors including risk perception, knowledge and general attitude to safety on using of HP had been investigated. This study showed that only 20.3% of employees claimed to wear hearing protection all the time when they exposed to noise. There was a significant relationship between use of hearing protector and worker's risk perception [p=0.048] and also their knowledge about hearing protection [p=0.009]. Also, the relationship between general attitude of workers to safety and risk perception was statistically significant [p=0.046]. The results of the study showed that for promoting the use of hearing protectors, two main strategy should be followed. First, removing the barriers to make hearing protectors compliant, and second enhancing the workers' risk perception about hearing loss and proper use of ear protectors