Shoko Kawanami

Urinary 1-hydroxypyrene and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine Levels among Coke-oven Workers for 2 Consecutive Days

Urinary 1‐hydroxypyrene and 8‐hydroxydeoxyguanosine Levels among Coke‐oven Workers for 2 Consecutive Days: Thi‐To‐Uyen NGUYEN, et al. Department of Health Policy and Management, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan—

Expression of Heme Oxygenase-1 in the Lungs of Rats Exposed to Potassium Octatitanate Whiskers

Expression of Heme Oxygenase‐1 in the Lungs of Rats Exposed to Potassium Octatitanate Whiskers: Yasuko Obata, et al. Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan—

Earplug-Type Earphone with Built-in Microphone Improves Monosyllable Intelligibility in Noisy Environments

Received Jul 18, 2007; Accepted Dec 7, 2007 Correspondence to: T. Nakao, Department of Health Policy and Management, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan, 1–1 Iseigaoka, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu 807-8555, Japan (e-mail: t-nakao@med.uoeh-u.ac.jp) Earplug-Type Earphone with Built-in Microphone Improves Monosyl lable Intelligibility in Noisy Environments

841 People at elevated risk of developing heat-related illness at workplace: a case-control study

Introduction Primary causes of heat-related illness (HRI) at work are: extreme heat and humidity, heavy work load, continuous exertion and infrequent rest, clothes with poor vapor–permeability, and personal health condition. Empirical research has not been performed to investigate the effect of underlying health problems to HRI. Methods A case-control study was performed by asking occupational health staffs to report all HRI cases occurred at their workplaces in 2015 and 2016. One co-worker control of the same gender at the closest in age was also reported for each case. Target population included: 26 large manufacturing factories, 15 major construction companies, all traffic guard companies in Japan, and a fire stations in Kitakyushu city. Their results of the periodic health examination were collected to evaluate the underlying health problems of obesity (BMI >25), impaired glucose tolerance, IGT (HbA1c≥6.5%, fast blood sugar ≥126 mg/dL, and/or casual blood sugar ≥200 mg/dL), high blood pressure, HBP (≥140/90 mmHg), and dyslipidemia (LDL-C ≥140 mg/dL, HDL-C <40 mg/dL, or TG ≥150 mg/dL). Data were statistically compared between the case and the control using JMP Pro 13. Results Overall incidence rate of HRI at the examined workplaces was 0.065% (114 cases/1 76 094 person-year). A total of 102 pairs (n=204) could be compared. Cases showed higher BMI (p=0.046) and visceral circumference (p=0.045). Cases and controls included 12 and 2 persons with IGT, respectively (p=0.005). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed increase of HbA1c elevated the risk of developing HRI (OR 16.76 [95% CI: 2.44 to 165.5], p=0.0014), whereas LDL-cholesterol showed protective effect (OR 0.97 [0.95–0.99], p<0.001). Conclusion Significantly elevated risk of developing heat-related illness was observed among workers with IGT. Impaired endothelium-dependent vasodilatation among workers with IGT may decrease heat dissipation by conduction, convection, radiation, and sweat evaporation and may pose a risk to develop HRI.

Evaluation of the improvement in hearing Japanese speech while wearing earplugs advertised as enabling communication

Workers often refuse to wear earplugs because of the difficulty hearing conversations in noisy workplaces. Little research has been performed to explore whether multiple syllables of the Japanese language are difficult to hear through earplugs. New earplugs recently became available that could be used to communicate clearly in noisy workplaces and simultaneously prevent personal noise exposure. This study aimed to evaluate the hearing of speech using three types of earplugs in a noisy environment. The subjects were 10 people without hearing loss. We conducted this experiment in the anechoic room at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan. We set up a pink noise environment at 80 dBA, 85 dBA, and 90 dBA, and evaluated the hearing of speech with and without earplugs. The subjects were asked to distinguish standard Japanese words comprising two syllables recorded on a CD-ROM (TY-89) established for the evaluation of the fitness of hearing aids. If the speech level required for 90% inte...

Bacterial attachment and insertion loss of earplugs used for fixed periods in noisy workplaces

In noisy workplaces, employees often tend to use earplugs for a long time in Japan. We have previously reported conditions related to bacterial attachment and the insertion loss of earplugs using data collected from six companies. In the present study, we distributed different kinds of foam earplugs at five companies and collected them after 1-, 2-, 4-, and 8-week usage (n = 123). We examined the total viable counts and presence of Staphylococcus aureus using 3M Petrifilm. We evaluated the insertion losses by means of the GRAS 45CB Acoustic Test Fixture. We detected a large number of viable counts in 5% of the earplugs. We found Staphylococcus aureus in 7% of the earplugs. We observed a small deterioration in insertion loss after 8-week usage. Neither the condition of bacterial attachment nor the insertion loss correlated with duration of use. We discuss the proper usage of earplugs in terms of industrial health.

Assessments by HR and %HRR of occupational work exertion for alternating periods of rest and manual labor.

Assessments by HR and %HRR of Occupational Work Exertion for Alternating Periods of Rest and Manual Labor: Yasumasa Eguchi, et al. Department of Health Development, Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan—