ABSTRACT
A questionnaire survey and patch testing on skin disorders were conducted on 20 chrysanthemum growers (15 males and 5 females) in the Kohoku district of Shiga Prefecture in order to clarify the etiology and make a plan for prevention. The results were as follows;<BR>1) Thirteen subjects suffered from skin disorders and 8 of them had contacted dermatitis since they started the cultivation of chrysanthemum.<BR>2) It was suggested that the skin disorders might be associated with such types of work as “lower -leaves pruning, ” “harvesting” and “shipping, ” during which they were closely in contact with chrysanthemum. However, our survey found that most the subjects paid less attention to chrysanthemum than pesticides to prevent skin disorders.<BR>3) The patch test found 10 out of the 13 subjects who had suffered from skin disorders manifested sensitization reactions to chrysanthemum or pesticides and 7 of them to both.<BR>Dermatologically, the disorders were diagnosed as allergic contact dermatitis caused by chrythanthemum or pesticides, but it was difficult to clarify which was the main factor of contact dermatitis.<BR>4) In order to prevent contact dermatitis among chrythanthemum growers, hygienic education on the sensitizing activity of chrysanthemum and guidance on effective protection against chrysanthemum and pesticides are needed.
ABSTRACT
Health problems of the farmers were surveyed in two districts where progressed mechanization, green hause culture or other improved management systems were introduced.<BR>The following results were obtained:<BR>1. Long daily working hours remain as before, therefore, sleeping hours and hausehold hours in female are shortened in busy seasons.<BR>2. By introduction of joint management or cooperative manegement working hours of female farmers were shortened in some cases, but not enough.<BR>3. New health hazards as noise, vibration, toxic chemicals, continuing of forced posture, forced repetitive motion of hands and arms are being marked.<BR>4. High incidence of subjective symptoms relating to their acute or chronic fatigue were obserbed in most type of agriculture, which were considered to indicate that modernization of agricultural production had been promoted in lacking of consideration for farmer's health.
ABSTRACT
The survey was done in a district where the mechanization of agriculture had advanced and part-time farming had been prevailing.<BR>Agricultural accidents, picked up from the insurance documents of the Agricultural Cooperative Association from 1977 to 1981, were analyzed statistically.<BR>Results obtained are as follows.<BR>1, The agricultural machines related to accidents were two-wheel tractors, combines, grass cutters and four-wheel tractors. These four types of machines occupied 72% of all accidents.<BR>2. The accidents were observed most frequently in busy seasons i. e. spring and autumn, and from 10 to 11 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m. in a day.<BR>3. Because of part-time farming, one third of the accidents occured on Sundays and national holidays.<BR>4. The accidents by two-wheel tractors and four-wheel tractors occured on the road, 67% and 49% respectively. There occured 86% of the accidents by combines in the field, and 85% of the injuries by combines were on hands and fingers. The injuries by grass cutters occured frequontly on legs and eyes, 58% and 18% respectively. One third of the eye injuries resulted in anopsia.<BR>5. There were few overlaps between the cases collected by the prefectural office and those from the insurance documents. Slight-injury cases were scarcely found in the insurance documents. These facts indicate the present information-collecting systems for the agricultural accidents are incomplete in this district.
ABSTRACT
Noise exposure levels of 40 cases of farmers were measured by use of the equivalent sound level meters (Rion EQ-04).<BR>Legs during all over the day ranged from 74.3 dB-A to 89.3 dB-A. It can be seen that noise exposure levels during all over the day were mostly determined by amounts of the sound energy exposed by agricultural works.<BR>Most of farmers were exposed high level of noise in their home, and even in rest times.<BR>Legs during the agricultural work ranged from 70.4 to 100.6 dB-A, being attributed by agricultural machinary noise.<BR>Legs measured in the present study were compared with the criterion for noise of the Environmental Protection Agency, U. S. and discussed from the viewpoint of hygiene.
ABSTRACT
Vibration and noise of three types of tractors were measured under various conditions of operation from the viewpoint of occupational health. The other hand, daily records of operation time of tractors were collected from 135 households and exposure time to tractor vibration were estimated from these data.<BR>Vibration spectra are showed in Fig. 1 and noise spectra in Fig. 2. The peaks of vibration spectra of tractor's seats are in the high frequency range corresponding to rev count of the engines. However, components of the low frequency range become often hygienic problem, when compared to ISO's Standard 2631-1974 (E) “Guide for the evaluation of human exposure to whole-body vibration.”<BR>Vibration acceleration levels of the tractor operating with various accessories are higher in the low frequency range than those without accessories.<BR>Acceration levels of Y and Z directions are higher than that of X direction and unfavorable hygienically. Antivibration countermeasure should be taken to the Y direction not only to the Z direction.<BR>Noise level of tractors exceed the hearing conservation criteria for daily 8 hour exposure, when they run at high speed. More serious problem is that the noise disturb speech communication between the driver and his co-workers or among co-workers. To prevent labor accidents tractor noise should be controlled.
ABSTRACT
A preliminary investigation on the traumatic accidents of farmers engaged in mechanized agricultural work was carried out from the viewpoint of epidemiology.<BR>The incidence of traumatic accidents was higher in the group of machine operators than of non-operators, the male group than the female group, and the middle-age group and the group with over 4 years' career.<BR>It was found from the cohort study that for the recent several years the male operators have been constantly in the traumatizing risk, but in the case of female oprators the traumatizing risk is increasing in the recent few years.<BR>Traumatic accidents occured frequently during the busiest farming season and during 10-11 o'clock in the morning and3-5 o'clock in the afternoon.In the subjective symptoms a marked sign of fatigue<BR>From these facts, the high incidence of traumatic accidents might be attributed to the great strain of mechanized agricultural work. was found.<BR>Authors keenly feel the necessity of ergonomic case-study on each traumatic accident.