Journal of Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention
Year:2016 | Volume:4 | Issue:3|Papers Count:9

Background and Objectives: The health of sand washing workers could be threatened by the crystalline silica dust exposure. The aim of this study was the evaluation of occupational and biological monitoring with crystalline silica dusts in the sand washing workers.Materials and Methods: This was an analytical and cross-sectional study of 44 sand washing workers exposed to crystalline silica and also 63 municipality gardeners as a control group in the city of Dorood. Occupational exposure monitoring to respirable total dust and silica dust was performed according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) methods 0600 and 7602-respectively. Biological monitoring of workers' was carried out according to the Karatas method for the analysis of Malondialdehyde in the blood serum of exposed and control subjects. The informed consents were taken for obtaining blood samples of workers, according to the Helsinki Declaration. Statistical analysis of data was done using SPSS version 16. The statistical test of Pearson, t-tests and linear regression was applied.Results: The occupational exposure of 54.55% was exceeded the occupational exposure limit of Iran at the level of 3 mg/m3. The mean exposure of sand miners and control group to respirable silica dust was evaluated at 0.219 ± 0.177 and 0.010 ± 0.002 as mg/m3respectively. Occupational exposure of all sand washing workers was higher than the occupational exposure limit of Iran at the level of 0.025 mg/m3.The concentration of serum Malondialdehyde (MDA) exposed group and the control group were 36.64 ± 10.75 and 19.40 ± 4.68 as μM respectively.Conclusion: Due to the positive correlation between exposure of sand washing workers to silica dust sand serum MDA among exposed group (P-value<0.0001, r=0.881), periodical biological monitoring along with effective control measures of workers are recommended for the health promotion of these workers.

Background and Objectives: Since the role of the transportation is to transport goods and passengers safely and comfortably, the safety has always been a common issue. However, in the past two decades, due to the increase in accidents and casualties, it has been more important. The aim of this paper is to minimize the risk factors that threaten pedestrians by identifying accident-prone areas in the city of Qazvin for pedestrians and provide solutions to improve the safety of pedestrians.Materials and Methods: In order to achieve the objectives of the paper at the first step the accident-prone areas were identified in the city and then by using the analytical process (AHP) with 5 parameters (vehicle speed, geometry, traffic safety, pedestrian safety behavior, environment) is evaluated.Results: the results show that in 38% of accidents drivers age between 19 and 27 years old and accidents mainly accrued in the intersections and squares of the city. Pedestrians behavior in the Taleghani intersection get a highest score and so it is not necessary to improve pedestrian behavior but environmental issue and lack of traffic equipment can may some problems. In Sepah intersection high volume and vehicles speed achieved the highest scores and geometry design and pedestrian behavior achieved the lowest score.Conclusion: The results indicate when geometry of road is not appropriate pedestrians do not behavior safety. In Sepah intersection in addition to the improving geometry design, pedestrian Should be guided. Modifying the lightstiming and building the safety island is more suggestions that could increase the Taleghani and Sepag intersections safety.

Background and Objectives: Existence arsenic in underground water puts drinking water consumers’ health at risk. Due to lack of drinking water sources in Iran, maximizing the allowable amount of arsenic is essential. The aim of this study was investigate the modified zeolite clinoptilolite with MgO arsenic for removal the arsenic from water resources.Materials and Methods: The clinoptilolite adsorbent was modified with potassium permanganate. The examined variables in this study were equilibrium time, pH, adsorbent particle size and arsenic initial concentration. To modified adsorbent were made cation exchange capacity, external cation exchange capacity and special surface area.Results: XRD analysis results show that adsorbent is formed from clinoptilolite 70%, 3% Ramsdellite, 8% silicon dioxide and 19% aluminum potassium. The results show that raw and modified cation exchange capacity was 5.57 and meq per gram, respectively. adsorption kinetic of arsenic on the modified absorbent will follow pseudo-second model, and suggesting that the adsorption mechanism might be a chemisorption process.Conclusion: The finding of this study show that the MnO2-modified clinoptilolite zeolite appears to be a promising adsorbent for removing trace arsenic amounts from water.

Background and Objectives: Job stress and unsafe behavior as the factors influencing the risk of mental and physical health problems in the workplace are known. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between job stress and safety culture among the Iran Telecom Companies.Materials and Methods: This study was a descriptivel and cross-sectional in 2012 on 221 personnel of telecommunication companies was done in Shiraz, Iran. Sampling was done randomly and research tools, including job stress questionnaire (American Psychological Health Institute) and safety culture questionnaire was made. For data analysis, Chi-square and t-tests were used.Results: 56.1 and 43.9 percent of those surveyed have a negative safety culture and safety culture were positive in 43.9 percent. In 79.6 percent of employees reported high stress. The relationship between safety culture and education, mean safety culture in people who had less education diploma, compared with persons with higher education was lower. The relationship between job stress and safety culture through the T-test showed a significant negative correlation between these two variables exist (P<-0.001).Conclusion: Given the significance of the relationship between job stress and safety culture in this study and the high level of stress in staff, Negative effects on the efficiency and focus of this issue and the subsequent reduction in productivity will follow.

Background and Objectives: Generally driver, vehicle and road are three important factors of accidents causes. Driver’s physical health should be considered because 5.according to the statistics drivers are ninety percent of accidents reason. Vision is one of the senses which is absolutely necessary for safe driving. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of colorblindness in Road Traffic Accidents.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done in 2012-2015 on 2089 drivers selected from center of occupational medicine “Arta salamat Ardabil”. Sample comprised 65 patients with colorblind and 130 control subjects with normal vision. Driver’s accidents were reported by police over the 5 past years. Studied samples were interred with informed consent in the study. Independent samples T- test was used to analysis of data.Results: Among 2089 cases, 65 drivers (3.1%) were identified with impaired color vision. Types of color blindness were respectively green color blindness (67.69%), red-green colorblindness (23.07%), red colorblindness (7.69%) and total colorblindness (1.55%). The mean age of colorblind drivers was 45.27 years with standard deviation of 11.027 and mean age of normal vision subjects was 42.67 years with standard deviation of 9.354. During the 5-year period 7 (10.7%) of colorblind drivers and 26 (20%) of control subjects were involved in any motor vehicle accidents.Conclusion: Drivers who have disorder in eyesight are more involved in traffic accidents in comparison with normal drivers. Paying more attention to identify these drivers such as colorblind during the certification driving licenses can be helpful to decrease traffic accidents.

Background and Objectives: Acetaminophen is one of widely used analgesics/antipyretics worldwide for human and animals. Electro-photo catalytic removal of acetaminophen from drinking water using zinc oxide nanoparticles immobilized on zinc electrode was investigated in this study.Materials and Methods: This study is an applied-experimental study. The contaminated water in a batch electrochemical reactor (with zinc-copper electrodes), ultra violet-electrochemical reactor (with zinc-copper electrodes), electro-photo catalytic reactor (with zinc oxide nanoparticles immobilized on zinc-copper electrodes) is prepared by adding 50, 100, 200 mg/L acetaminophen to drinking water. The studied variables are pH (4-8), the concentration of acetaminophen in suspensions (50, 100, 200 mg/L), the UV-A lamps (120-360 mW/cm2), radiation times (30, 60, 90 min), layering of ZnO nanoparticles (1, 2, 3), and current electrical densities (3, 6, 9 mA/cm2).Ethical considerations in this study were adhered based on the Helsinki guidelines.Results: The findings shows that the time required for the removal of the 100% acetaminophen concentration (200 mg/L) is about<90 min using 2 layers of ZnO nanoparticle, at pH 4, current electrical density of 9 mA/cm2 and intensity of 360 mW/cm2. The time required for the removal of the 100% acetaminophen concentration (50 mg/L) is about<60 min using 2 layers of ZnO nanoparticle, at pH 4, current electrical density of 3 mA/cm2 and intensity of 360 mW/cm2.Conclusions: This result suggests that this electro-photo catalytic system is a suitable method for removal of acetaminophen.

Background and Objectives: The severity of industrial accidents is caused by various and different factors. This study aimed to analyze the causal factors of accidents severity and forecasting the severity of the accidents in construction industries.Materials and Methods: This study was an analytical cross-sectional that analyzed and the forecasted the severity of accidents occurred during the years of 2009-2013 at largest construction industries in Iran. The data included information on 500 accidents causing human injury during the studied years. Data analyses were done using Artificial Neural Network, using Matlab R 2014. Ethical considerations in this study were adhered based on the Helsinki guidelines.Results: The findings showed that, mean of age and education, Type of activity and number of workers in construction activities, health-safety-environment periodic training, content of health-safety-environment training and health-safety-environment training indicator and the hazard identification, risk assessment, safety audit and control measures such as personal-protective-equipment can be identified as indicators and Forecasting of accidents severity rate in the construction industry.Conclusion: As results Artificial Neural Network can be used as a convenient tool to analyze and forecasting the causal layers of industrial accidents.

Background and Objectives: The concept of safety culture is improving safety in workplaces. Recent focus on the management role in the causes of accidents has led to greater attention to the concept of safety culture. Various tools have been developed to measure safety culture in different studies. The purpose of this paper was to provide a standard tool and validate a customized questionnaire for assessing safety culture in the petrochemical industry.Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the petrochemical industry in Iran during autumn 2014. The studied subjects consisted of 44 petrochemical workers with registered accidents from 2011 to 2014. A questionnaire including 37 questions was distributed to staff members and the reliability and validity of questionnaire were assessed. In order to confirm the factor analysis, the Kaisor-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and Bartlett’s sphericity tests were used. Ethical considerations in this study were adhered based on the Helsinki guidelines.Results: The results of reliability analysis of questionnaire showed that Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient was 0.95. The results of KMO (0.72) and Bartlett’s sphericity test (x2=1300.81, p<0.001) suggested that factor analysis was appropriate method for assessing the factor structure of the questionnaire. There were significant positive correlations between all features of safety culture questionnaire.Conclusion: This study has found that the customized safety culture questionnaire had 7 effective components and the validity values indicated that this questionnaire may be appropriate tool for assessing safety culture in petrochemical industries.

Background and Objectives: Millions of workers in the production or using of different chemicals such as melamine formaldehyde resin are exposed by formaldehyde. In spite of Widespread formaldehyde usage, there are too concerns about its toxicity effects. This study aimed to assess the workers occupational exposure to formaldehyde in some melamine production workshops and blood factors change in the exposed workers.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 66 workers in Tehran.40 melamine manufactures workers as exposed group and 26 food industry workers as unexposed group was selected. Occupationally exposure to formaldehyde was assessed by NIOSH 3500 method. Hematological parameters including White Blood Cell, Red Blood Cell, Platelet Count, Lymphocytes Percent and Volume of Red Blood Cells was evaluated. Ethical considerations in this study were adhered based on the Helsinki guidelines.Results: occupationally median exposure to formaldehyde in melamine manufactures was evaluated 0.0896 ppm (0.03-0.2ppm), which is lower than the permitted ceiling limit (TLVc=0.3ppm) in Iran and more than the NIOSH threshold exposure limit (TWA=0.016 ppm).The results show, in exposed group, workers with unmoral count of white and red blood cells are significantly higher than unexposed people.Conclusion: Occupationally exposure to formaldehyde cause adverse effects on the hematopoietic system. Exposures to formaldehyde in the concentration lower than approved standard limit in Iran probably induce toxicity effect on the blood cells. Because of the few number of people surveyed in this study, broader studies suggested. In addition assessing blood cells, more specific tests are necessary to evaluate the toxicity effect of formaldehyde on the blood.