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- Ahlborg, Gunnar, 1948, et al.
(author)
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Reproductive effects of chemical exposures in health professions
- 1995
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In: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. - 1076-2752. ; 37:8, s. 957-61
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Numerous chemical substances are handled by persons working in the health care sector. At exposure levels that may occur in the occupational setting, some of these substances are potentially harmful to the reproductive processes. Among the potentially harmful substances are anesthetic gases, antineoplastic agents, and sterilants. The epidemiological evidence of increased risks for adverse reproductive effects (eg, subfertility, spontaneous abortions, congenital defects) from such exposure is not unequivocal. However, due to the toxic potential, exposures should be kept at a minimum, and this may be especially important for workers who are pregnant or are planning to achieve pregnancy.
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| 2. |
- Lindqvist, A, et al.
(author)
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Artery blood pressure oscillation after active standing up: an indicator of sympathetic function in diabetic patients
- 1997
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In: Clinical Physiology. - : Wiley. - 1365-2281 .- 0144-5979. ; 17:2, s. 159-169
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dynamic artery blood pressure (Finapres) response to active standing up, normally consisting of initial rise, fall and recovery above the baseline (overshoot), was compared with the early steady-state artery blood pressure level to measure sympathetic vasomotor function in healthy subjects (n = 23, age 35 +/- 9 years; mean +/-SD) and in type I diabetic patients without autonomic neuropathy (AN) (group 1: n = 18, 38 +/- 13 years), with AN but no cardiovascular drugs (group 2a: n = 7, 44 +/- 11 years) and with both AN and cardiovascular drugs (group 2b: n = 10, 47 +/- 7 years). Systolic and diastolic overshoot were similar in the control (15 +/- 13/15 +/- 11 mmHg) and group 1 subjects. Systolic overshoot disappeared in 57% of patients in group 2a (-1 +/- 9 mmHg; P < 0.03), whereas artery blood pressure still overshot in diastole (8 +/- 7 mmHg; NS). Systolic overshoot disappeared in all patients in group 2b (-22 +/- 22 mmHg; P < 0.0006) and diastolic overshoot disappeared in 60% of these patients (-6 +/- 16 mmHg; P = 0.0006). Systolic early steady-state level was not lower in group 2a than in group 1 (NS), but it was impaired in group 2b (P < 0.006), in which six diabetic patients had a pathological response beyond the age-related reference values. There was a strong association between the overshoot and steady-state levels (P for chi 2 < 0.001, n = 58). Overshoot of the control subjects and patients in group 2b correlated to their respective steady-state blood pressure levels (r > or = 0.76; P < or = 0.001). In conclusion, baroreceptor reflex-dependent overshoot of the artery blood pressure after active standing up diminishes with the development of AN and it is associated with the early steady-state level of the artery blood pressure.
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| 3. |
- Edling, C., et al.
(author)
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Long-term follow up of workers exposed to solvents
- 1990
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In: British journal of industrial medicine. - 0007-1072. ; 47:2, s. 75-82
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Long term occupational exposure to organic solvents may cause adverse effects to the central nervous system. This collaborative study between six Swedish departments of occupational medicine examines the overall prognosis in terms of working capacity, symptoms, and psychometric test performance for individuals occupationally exposed to organic solvents. After re-analyses of the data from an initial clinical investigation of 111 men, the subjects were divided into two subgroups: one group of 65 with symptoms but no impairment on the tests and one group of 46 with toxic encephalopathy (symptoms and test impairment). At least five years after the initial examination the subjects were asked to attend a re-examination that included a structured medical interview and a psychometric investigation. The results indicate that effects on the central nervous system persist even when exposure has ceased. In the group of 46 more men had stopped working and were receiving sickness or early retirement pensions. This group also had reduced activity levels with regard to everyday life, leisure activities, and education or training and more neuropsychiatric symptoms. There was no support for the view that a solvent induced toxic encephalopathy is a progressive disease comparable with presenile dementia such as Alzheimer's disease or Pick's disease. If a worker was removed from exposure when he presented symptoms without signs of impairment in intellectual function recovery was seen in most cases.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Ahlborg, Gunnar, 1948, et al.
(author)
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Tobacco smoke exposure and pregnancy outcome among working women. A prospective study at prenatal care centers in Orebro County, Sweden
- 1991
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In: Am J Epidemiol. - 0002-9262. ; 133:4, s. 338-47
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Among 4,687 women undergoing prenatal care in Orebro County, Sweden, from October 1980 to June 1983, 678 nonsmokers reported passive exposure to tobacco smoke. Of these women, 267 had been passively exposed at work, and the risk ratio (RR) for intrauterine death (spontaneous abortion or stillbirth) among these pregnancies was increased to 1.53 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.98-2.38) compared with pregnancies of unexposed working women. This could not be explained by age, previous spontaneous abortion, educational level, planning of pregnancy, or alcohol use. The effect was confined to first-trimester fetal loss (adjusted RR = 2.16, 95% CI 1.23-3.81), while active smoking was associated with intrauterine death after the first trimester. Passive exposure in the workplace was weakly associated with preterm birth (less than 37 weeks) but not with low birth weight (less than 2,500 g) among full-term livebirths. Active smoking clearly increased the risk of both of these outcomes. However, passive exposure in the home only did not seem to affect pregnancy outcome. The lack of quantitative exposure data points to the need for more research before passive exposure to tobacco smoke can be regarded as an established hazard to fetal development and survival.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Johansson Hanse, Jan, 1954, et al.
(author)
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Musculoskeletal Symptoms, Ergonomic Aspects and Psychosocial Factors in Two Different Truck Assembly Concepts
- 1993
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In: International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics. - 1872-8219 .- 0169-8141. ; 12:1-2, s. 35-48
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The project was carried out as a multidisciplinary correlational study of two truck-axle assembly systems (System A and B). System A (the old system) could be characterized as an unpaced line assembly system, whereas the change to the new system, System B, involved a parallelized system with longer job cycle time. The study included all permanent assembly workers in the two systems (System A 17 workers, System B 28 workers). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the two systems with respect to ergonomic factors, psychosocial factors and self-reported musculoskeletal symptoms. The job cycles were studied by means of video observation. Each subject answered a questionnaire regarding musculoskeletal symptoms and physical and psychosocial environment. The assemblers in System B were more satisfied with the physical work environment (e.g. noise, air), but less satisfied with the psychosocial environment, and the period prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms was not lower, compared with the assemblers in System A. Video observation techniques showed that deep forward flexion was less common, but that the work was more hand intense in System B. In System B, neck/shoulder symptoms were associated principally with physical work (load) variables, whereas low back symptoms were associated with psychosocial variables.
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| 9. |
- Kadefors, Roland, 1939, et al.
(author)
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Ergonomics in Parallelized Car Assembly: A Case Study with References Also to Productivity Aspects
- 1996
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In: Applied Ergonomics. - 0003-6870 .- 1872-9126. ; 27:2, s. 101 - 110
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This publication was gaining data at the very early phase of the Volvo Uddevalla plant projection process (it required a extensive time to complete and to finally publish). (That is, long before the authors became engaged in an extensive research programme financed by the National Institute for Working Life in Solna) (Cooperative for Optimisation of industrial production systems regarding Productivity and Ergonomics COPE). It deals with e.g. efficiency aspects and ergonomics of this (very) plant and the more embryonic aspects of the so-called tilting devices are evaluated in this publication (a controversial equipment at the early period of time). As was developed by the Volvo personnels and the authors (ergonomic aspects was an accepted way for us to gain access to this plant, to deal with the assembly system design process was from the beginning not accepted (since this was a work task assigned only to the Volvo professionals). But this situation changed after some years (development of the assembly work instructions were a also an accepted work task for us scientist) (see other publications registered in Chalmers Public Library).
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| 10. |
- Kadefors, Roland, et al.
(author)
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Recruitment of low threshold motor-units in the trapezius muscle in different static arm positions
- 1999
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In: Ergonomics. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0014-0139 .- 1366-5847. ; 42:2, s. 359-375
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A prevailing hypothesis for development of myalgia symptoms in the trapezius muscle is based on observations that in stereotypic activation of muscle the same low-threshold motor-units are the first ones to be recruited, and that these units are active throughout the contraction, until total relaxation. The theory suggests that these units are the first ones in monotonous repetitive work to be subject to degenerative processes, causing pain. The present project was undertaken to evaluate to what extent recruitment of motor-units in the trapezius muscle is position-specific, i.e. if there are motor-units that are recruited over a wide range of arm postures. Fine wire electrode pairs, inserted 2 cm lateral to the midpoint between the acromion and the C7 spinous processus, were used for signal acquisition. Methods for decomposition of the interference patterns were developed, allowing identification of single motor-units in signals registered in different arm positions. Voluntary recruitment of motor-units in the descending portion of the trapezius muscle was studied in 24 different arm positions (0–90 shoulder flexion, 0–45 humeral abduction, and 45–135 elbow flexion) in three subjects. The results showed that the wire electrode technique and the signal processing algorithm employed allowed motor-unit identification in nonisometric conditions. It was found that low threshold motor-units in the trapezius muscle, active over a wide range of arm positions, could be identified in all three subjects. We refer to those as Cinderella, or C, units. These results support the research hypothesis addressed.
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