Biomarkers of oxidative-stress and inflammation in exhaled breath condensate from hospital cleaners.

OBJECTIVE: We studied the impact of chlorinated agents exposure on exhaled breath condensate (EBC) biomarkers in cleaners. METHODS: Malondialdehyde (MDA), 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), nitrites (NO2(-)), nitrates (NO3(-)), pH, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and ammonium (NH3(+)) were tested in EBC of 40 cleaners and 40 non-exposed controls. Pentraxin-3 (PTX3) and soluble type II receptor of IL-1 (sIL-1RII) were analyzed also in plasma. RESULTS: Levels of MDA-EBC, 4-HNE-EBC and NO3(-)-EBC were higher, while pH-EBC values were lower, in cleaners. MDA-EBC was associated with 4-HNE-EBC, NO3(-)-EBC and pH. 4-HNE-EBC correlated with PTX3. CONCLUSION: Professional exposure to chlorinated agents increases EBC biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation.

Chronic diseases are strongly associated with sickness absences in a sample of Italian public employees.

OBJECTIVES: Data on the prevalence of chronic diseases and their relationship with sickness absence in the Italian public employees are rather scarce. Therefore, in the first place, we assessed the distribution of chronic diseases in the employees of the University of Ferrara. As a next step, we investigated the possible associations between each chronic disease and cumulative days of all-cause sickness absence, and finally we investigated the odds ratio of each single chronic disease on sickness absence. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 514 employees, 269 sick-listed and 245 not sick-listed in 2012, were studied. Demographical/clinical characteristics and chronic diseases were obtained from all study participants during medical surveillance procedures. Sickness absence days and job seniority data were obtained from the administrative office. RESULTS: Gastrointestinal and psychiatric diseases were the most reported in the sick-listed sample (p = 0.01 and p = 0.02, respectively, compared to the not sick-listed). In the interquantile regression analysis, the sickness absence days were associated with psychiatric diseases (ß = 65.1, 95% CI: 13.2-117.1, p = 0.01) and with the presence of 2 or more chronic diseases (ß = 23.3, 95% CI: 4.5-42, p = 0.02). Furthermore, the logistic regression analysis showed that the odds of sickness absence were increased 2 fold by psychiatric diseases (OR = 2.2, 95% CI: 1.01-4.93, p = 0.04), and gastrointestinal diseases (OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.07-3.42, p = 0.02) and, to a lesser extent, by high body mass index (OR = 1.05, 95% CI: 1-1.11, p = 0.03). Conversely, female gender reduced by half the odds of sickness absence (OR = 0.5, 95% CI: 0.3-0.8, p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the relevant association between chronic diseases and sickness absence in Italian public employees. Our findings indicate the importance of considering the health status when designing preventive interventions aimed at decreasing sickness absences in this population.

[Reduction of injuries related to manual handling of patients: two preventive methods used in five Ferrara district hospitals]. / Riduzione degli infortuni relativi alla movimentazione carichi/pazienti in un'Azienda Sanitaria Locale: analisi degli interventi preventivi prima e dopo.

AIMS: To evaluate the effectiveness of two training programs on the reduction of injuries from manual handling of patients in five hospitals under the district of Ferrara. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed injuries that occurred between 2002 and 2010. In 2004/2005 and 2008/2010 the health-care workers underwent to two different training programs. In 2007, the hospitals purchased assistive devices. RESULTS: In 2006 there were 82 accidents. After the acquisition of the assistive devices (2007) and the new training program (2008/2010), the accidents dropped to 32. CONCLUSIONS: The results highlight the effectiveness of the combined training programs and assistive devices in reducing the number of accidents.