[Fitness to work and diabetes in health care workers]. / Idoneità lavorativa e diabete in operatori sanitari.

Diabetes mellitus is a disease of great social relief that has a deep impact also in working life. Our short paper wants to highlight some critical aspects that occupational physician must deal with both in preventive and periodic health evaluation for diabetic subjects. In our study, performed on health care workers, we reported 16 cases of diabetes; 10 of them were nurses, 5 sanitary auxiliaries and 1 sanitary technical operator. The judgment has been of full suitability to the specific task for 7 subjects, whereas for 4 workers it has been stated suitability with limitation for problems related with diabetes or its complications. The judgment with limitation for the other 5 subjects was due to pathologies not related with diabetes. The shift work, and mainly the night shift, is the risk that diabetic subjects cannot effort when the disease is not sufficiently compensated. The small number of diabetic workers, 16 over 1994 visited (0.8%), suggests for a spontaneous choice of diabetic people towards other kind of work without shift risk.

[Application and effects of smoking ban in bars and restaurants of Rome]. / Applicazione ed effetti del divieto di fumare (Legge n. 3 del 16/01/2003) nei bar e ristoranti di Roma.

Both active and passive tobacco smoke is carcinogenic. In the last years the most important countries of European Community developed and passed smoke-free public places and smoke-free workplace legislations. The aim of this study was to investigate the real application of smoking ban in bars and restaurants of Rome and to value social, economic and health effects caused by the application of the law. The study was carried out in 200 public places (100 restaurants and 100 bars) with an inspection of the sites and the administration of a questionnaire to the managers of the public places. Results demonstrate that smoking ban in public places is widely respected and that the application of the law had a very positive impact on the quality of life and health of workers and general population.

[Health surveillance in health care workers]. / La sorveglianza sanitaria degli operatori sanitari: esperienza in un Policlinico universitario.

In a complex reality as the hospital, occupational physician plays a key role in risk prevention through health surveillance. The medical examination is intended to highlight any possible deterioration of workers' health and to detect workers' hypersusceptibility to occupational hazards. We report biostatistic data resulted from health surveillance conducted on health care workers in 2005 and 2006 in a universitary hospital, with particular regard to the judgement of the fitness to work and the reasons that has determined it. Our report, in agreement with data available in literature, shows that manual patient lifting is one of the most common professional hazards within the hospital and occupational physician must pay a special attention to it, promoting an integrated answer.

[Latex gloves dermatitis in health care workers]. / Esperienza di dermatiti da guanti in lattice nel personale sanitario di un Policlinico Universitario.

With regard to health care workers the irritative contact dermatitis represents about the 80% of all the dermopathies in sanitary staff whereas the allergic contact dermatitis covers approximately the 20% of the professional dermatoses. In our study 4 cases of allergy to latex in hospital nurses are presented; the clinical history is described for each of them as well as the resulting judgment of suitability to the specific work. In general population the allergy to latex is estimated to be approximately 1-6%; in sanitary staff it rises to 5-12%. We have to observe that not all the sensitive subjects show symptoms of allergy. Actually the 4 cases described represent less than 1% of the surveyed group. The sensitization is likely to be so reduced also thanks to the application of preventive guide-lines such as the one proposed by NIOSH. In Italy the criteria in preventing allergic reactions to latex are illustrated in a consensus document issued by a study-team from Italian Association of the Health Workers.

[Prevalence and risk factors of urinary incontinence in female workers of hotels]. / Prevalenza e fattori di rischio dell'incontinenza urinaria nelle lavoratrici del settore alberghiero.

The International Continence Society defines urinary incontinence (UI) as "a condition in which involuntary loss of urine is a social or hygienic problem and is objectively demonstrable". There are three different jorms of UI. stress urinary incontinence, urge urinary incontinence and mixed incontinence. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of UI in a group of female workers in the hotel sector. The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Urinary Incontinence short form (ICIQ-UI Short Form) was administered to all female workers and data were collected about age, body mass index, number of vaginal and Caesarean delivery. Results showed a prevalence of UI widely bigger in the plans waitress than in video display terminal workers and suggest the hypothesis that manual handling of loads representing a possible occupational risk for UI.