[Integrated use of data bases to map manufacturing processes involving exposure to carcinogens in the Piedmont Region: the example of formaldehyde]. / Uso integrato di banche dati per la mappatura di lavorazioni con esposizione a cancerogeni nella Regione Piemonte: l'esempio della formaldeide.

BACKGROUND: Exposure to carcinogens is still widespread in working environments. For the purpose of defining priority of interventions, it is necessary to estimate the number and the geographic distribution of workers potentially exposed to carcinogens. It could therefore be useful to test the use of tools and information sources already available in order to map the distribution of exposure to carcinogens. Formaldehyde is suggested as an example of an occupational carcinogen in this study. OBJECTIVES: The study aimed at verifying and investigating the potential of 3 integrated databases: MATline, CAREX, and company databases resulting from occupational accident and disease claims (INAIL), in order to estimate the number of workers exposed to formaldehyde and map their distribution in the Piedmont Region. METHODS: The list of manufacturing processes involving exposure to formaldehyde was sorted by MIATline; for each process the number of firms and employees were obtained from the INAIL archives. By applying the prevalence of exposed workers obtained with CAREX, an estimate of exposure for each process was determined. A map of the distribution of employees associated with a specific process was produced using ArcView GIS software. RESULTS: It was estimated that more than 13,000 employees are exposed to formaldehyde in the Piedmont Region. The manufacture of furniture was identified as the process with the highest number of workers exposed to formaldehyde (3,130),followed by metal workers (2,301 exposed) and synthetic resin processing (1,391 exposed). CONCLUSION: The results obtained from the integrated use of databases provide a basis for defining priority of preventive interventions required in the industrial processes involving exposure to carcinogens in the Piedmont Region.

Risk factors for upper extremity musculoskeletal symptoms among call center employees.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms in the upper extremity (UE) in a sample of Italian call center (CC) operators, and the relationship between the symptoms and potential workplace risk factors. METHODS: During 2005-2006, 775 workers from seven CCs in the Turin area participated in a questionnaire survey of exposure to ergonomic, organizational and psychosocial factors at work, socio-demographics, lifestyle, symptoms and diseases. Musculoskeletal symptoms were defined as self-reported musculoskeletal symptoms in the UE during the previous 28 days, for which a physician was consulted and/or drugs were taken. Relative risks were estimated through Poisson regression models with the Huber-White sandwich estimator of variance. RESULT: Overall, 45% of workers reported UE symptoms in the last four weeks. Symptoms in the neck were the most prevalent (39%), followed by the shoulder (22%), hand-wrist (10%) and elbow (4%). Among workplace risk factors, neck-shoulder symptoms were associated with low job control, elevated noise, poor desk lighting and impossibility to lean back while sitting; whereas elbow-hand/wrist symptoms were associated with short intervals between calls, insufficient working space, lack of forearm support, job insecurity and long seniority in the CC industry. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of UE symptoms in this sample was similar to that reported by other studies conducted in this industry. Our results confirm previously reported associations, such as poor characteristics of the workstation and psychological stressors. The striking difference between the set of risk factors for neck-shoulder and elbow/wrist-hand symptoms indicates that the two regions should be investigated separately.

[Effectiveness of a training programme in reducing occupational injuries: the Turin-Novara high-speed railway line experience]. / Efficacia della formazione sulla riduzione degli infortuni da lavoro: l'esperienza della linea ferroviaria ad alta velocità Torino-Novara.

BACKGROUND: There is little evidence in the literature to suggest that safety training is effective in reducing injuries at the workplace. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at assessing the impact of a safety training programme on injury rates during construction work on the Turin-Novara high-speed railway line (2002-2006). METHODS: We adopted a before-after study design. Since workers were enrolled and trained at different times, pre- and post-training periods were calculated individually for each worker RESULTS: At the end of the training programme, the incidence of occupational injuries had fallen by 16% in the case of basic training and 25% for specific training. In the construction workers group (63.5% of trained workers) the reductions were 21% for basic training and 27% for specific training. All variations were statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Implementation of the training programme described led to a reduction in injury rates.

MATline: a job-exposure matrix for carcinogenic chemicals.

MATline is a tool that can be used to predict which industrial processes can be expected to involve the use of a substance that is considered carcinogenic as documented in the literature. The database includes agents carrying risk phrases R45, R49 and R40 according to the method of classification adopted by the EU and/or agents in categories 1, 2A and 2B as classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Each agent is associated with a list of industrial processes coded according to the tariff headings used by the National Institute of Insurance against Occupational Injuries and Diseases (Istituto Nazionale per l'Assicurazione contro gli Infortuni sul Lavoro, INAIL). The main sources of information are the IARC Monographs and databases available through the National Library of Medicine's TOXNET portal. The matrix currently includes 600 carcinogenic agents, 23 classes of agents and some 7000 links between agents and industrial processes. MATline can be viewed on the www.dors.it website.