Estimating Total Energy Expenditure for Fire-Fighters during Large Scale Disaster Response Training Using a Tri-Axial Accelerometer.

The present study was conducted to estimate total energy expenditure (TEE) of fire-fighters using tri axial-accelerometers in conjunction with an activity log survey on a large number of subjects undergoing training mimicking a large-scale disaster. Subjects were 240 fire-fighters participating in a two-day fire-fighting training dedicated to large-scale natural disasters. Data was analyzed by job type of activity group and the job rank, and by comparing the average. The average TEE of the total survey training period is about 3619 (±499) kcal, which is the same value of expenditure for professional athletes during the soccer game season. From the activity group, the rescue and other teams consumed significantly more energy than the fire and Emergency Medical Team (EMS) teams. From the job rank, Fire Captain (conducting position) consumed significantly lower energy than the Fire Lieutenant and Fire Sergeant. Furthermore, it was found that a middle position rank consumed the most energy. This research supports a need to reconsider the current rescue food (and protocols) to supplement the energy expenditure of fire-fighters. In addition, since there was a significant difference between the job type and the job rank, it is necessary to examine the energy amount and shape suitable for each.

The effect of leisure time physical activity and sedentary behaviour on the health of workers with different occupational physical activity demands: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Although it is generally accepted that physical activity reduces the risk for chronic non-communicable disease and mortality, accumulating evidence suggests that occupational physical activity (OPA) may not confer the same health benefits as leisure time physical activity (LTPA). It is also unclear if workers in high OPA jobs benefit from LTPA the same way as those in sedentary jobs. Our objective was to determine whether LTPA and leisure time sedentary behaviour (LTSB) confer the same health effects across occupations with different levels of OPA. METHODS: Searches were run in Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, ProQuest Public Health and Scopus from inception to June 9, 2020. Prospective or experimental studies which examined the effects of LTPA or LTSB on all-cause and cardiovascular mortality and cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal pain, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, arrhythmias and depression among adult workers grouped by OPA (low OPA/sitters, standers, moderate OPA/intermittent movers, high OPA/heavy labourers) were eligible. Results were synthesized using narrative syntheses and harvest plots, and certainty of evidence assessed with GRADE. RESULTS: The review includes 38 papers. Across all outcomes, except cardiovascular mortality, metabolic syndrome and atrial fibrillation, greater LTPA was consistently protective among low OPA, but conferred less protection among moderate and high OPA. For cardiovascular mortality and metabolic syndrome, higher levels of LTPA were generally associated with similar risk reductions among all OPA groups. Few studies examined effects in standers and none examined effects of LTSB across OPA groups. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence suggests that LTPA is beneficial for all workers, but with larger risk reductions among those with low compared to high OPA jobs. This suggests that, in our attempts to improve the health of workers through LTPA, tailored interventions for different occupational groups may be required. More high-quality studies are needed to establish recommended levels of LTPA/LTSB for different OPA groups. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO # CRD42020191708 .

A modified physiological strain index for workplace-based assessment of heat strain experienced by agricultural workers.

BACKGROUND: As global temperatures rise, increasing numbers of individuals will work in hot environments. Interventions to protect their health are critical, as are reliable methods to measure the physiological strain experienced from heat exposure. The physiological strain index (PSI) is a measure of heat strain that relies on heart rate and core temperature but is challenging to calculate in a real-world occupational setting. METHODS: We modified the PSI for use in field settings where resting temperature and heart rate are not available and used the modified physiological strain index (mPSI) to describe risk factors for high heat strain (mPSI ≥ 7) experienced by agricultural workers in Florida during the summers of 2015 through 2017. mPSI was calculated for 221 workers, yielding 465 days of data. RESULTS: A higher heat index (ß = 0.185; 95% CI: 0.064, 0.307) and higher levels of physical activity at work (0.033; 95% CI: 0.017, 0.050) were associated with a higher maximum mPSI. More years worked in US agriculture (-0.041; 95% CI: -0.061, -0.020) were protective against a higher maximum mPSI. Out of 23 workdays that a participant experienced a maximum mPSI ≥ 7, 22 were also classified as strained by at least one other measure of high heat strain (core temperature [Tc] >38.5°C, sustained heart rate >(180 - age), and mean heart rate > 115 bpm). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides critical information on risk factors for elevated heat strain for agricultural workers and suggests a practical approach for using PSI in field-based settings.

An ergonomic assessment of using laterally-tilting operating room tables and friction reducing devices for patient lateral transfers.

Patient lateral transfers between two adjacent surfaces pose high musculoskeletal disorder risks for nurses and patient handlers. The purpose of this research was to examine the ergonomic benefits of utilizing the laterally-tilting function of operating room (OR) tables during such transfers - along with different friction-reducing devices (FRD). This method allows the patient to slide down to the adjacent surface as one nurse guides the transfer and another controls the OR table angle with a remote control. Sixteen nursing students and sixteen college students were recruited to act as nurses and patients, respectively. Two OR table angles were examined: flat and tilted. Three FRD conditions were considered: a standard blanket sheet, a plastic bag, and a slide board. Electromyography (EMG) activities were measured bilaterally from the posterior deltoids, upper trapezii, latissimus dorsi, and lumbar erector spinae muscles. The Borg-CR10 scale was used for participants to rate their perceived physical exertions. The efficiency of each method was measured using a stopwatch. Results showed that the tilted table technique completely replaced the physical efforts that would have been exerted by the pushing-nurse, in that muscle activation did not increase in the pulling-nurse. On the contrary, EMG activities of the pulling-nurse for most of the muscles significantly decreased (p < 0.05). The subjective Borg-ratings also favored the tilted table with significantly lower ratings. However, the tilted table required on average 7.22 s more than the flat table to complete the transfer (p < 0.05). The slide board and plastic bag were associated with significantly lower Borg-ratings and EMG activities for most muscles than blanket sheet, but they both were not significantly different from each other. However, they each required approximately 5 s more than the blanket sheet method to complete the patient transfer (p < 0.05). By switching from flat + blanket sheet to tilted + slide board, EMG activities in all muscles decreased in the range of 18.4-72.3%, and Borg-ratings decreased from about 4 (somewhat difficult) to 1 (very light). The findings of this study propose simple, readily available ergonomic interventions for performing patient lateral transfers that can have significant implications for nurses' wellbeing and efficiency.

Ergonomics assessment of passive upper-limb exoskeletons in an automotive assembly plant.

Over the years, the industry's interest in using external support devices, such as exoskeletons, is increasing. They are introduced as a new technique for improving the conditions of workers and for reducing the risk of musculoskeletal injuries. An investigation of muscle activity, Jonsson's (Jonsson, 1982) ergonomic acceptance ranges, and shoulder range of motion was conducted with a sample of 12 workers using an upper extremity exoskeleton in an automotive assembly line. The operators performed continuous cycles of dynamic overhead work consisting of the assembly of the car body at the underside of the car making use of pneumatic screwdrivers. The EMGs (anterior part of deltoid, trapezius, latissimus dorsi and erector spinae) were measured for the muscle activity analysis on the one hand, and for the ergonomics study on the other hand. The latter consisted of an approach based on Jonsson's work, that establishes acceptance thresholds of cumulative percentage of maximum voluntary contraction of muscle activity (%MVC) in a work cycle. The joint angles motion capture was carried out by measuring the angles of the neck, back, and arms joints. All measurements were performed during experimental sessions with and without an exoskeleton. The key findings show reductions of 34% and 18% of the deltoid and the trapezius muscular activities, respectively, which in turn could lead to a reduction of discomfort and fatigue. The erector spinae and latissimus dorsi muscles were not significantly affected by exoskeleton. The values of muscular activity were also represented over Jonsson's acceptance areas. Referring to the posture, some differences were found in the range of movement of back, neck, and arms owing to the use of the exoskeleton; however, the differences were smaller than 5% in all cases.

Shoulder pain among male industrial workers: Validation of a conceptual model in two independent French working populations.

This study aims to validate a conceptual model for shoulder pain risk factors in two independent samples of male industrial workers: the Cosali cohort (n = 334) and one pharmaceutical company (n = 487). Direct and indirect relationships between work organization factors (automatic speed of a machine or movement of a product and work pace dependent on customers' demand), psychosocial factors (Job strain model), biomechanical factors (working with abducted arms, working with arms at or above shoulder level, and perceived physical exertion), perceived stress, and shoulder pain were explored using structural equation models. Shoulder pain was positively associated with biomechanical exposure in both samples, and with perceived stress only in the pharmaceutical preparation manufacturer, while factors related to work organization and psychosocial factors had indirect impacts on the risk of chronic shoulder pain in both samples. The results provide a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between workplace risk factors and shoulder pain.

Occupational variation in the relationship between child health and family size.

Empirical evidence for quantity-quality trade-off is hardly ubiquitous, especially when quality is measured by child health outcomes. The paper offers a new explanation to this puzzle. It shows that the quantity-quality relationships are subject to occupational variation when quality is given by nutritional status, and occupations differ in their physical labor intensity. It embeds, in a simple household optimization model, a minimum consumption requirement that rises with physical work intensity of occupation. The occupational differences in subsistence consumption requirement generate variation in child nutritional status, and hence, in the shadow price of children. The nature of the quantity-quality relationship, therefore, varies with work intensity of occupations. The model yields an equilibrium relationship between the number and nutritional status of children that is positive for households in strenuous occupations and ambiguous for other households. These results help reconcile some inconsistent findings on quantity-quality trade-off, which may partly be explained by the omission of occupational variation in nutritional status.

Social inequalities in the prevalence of indicators of active aging in the Brazilian population: National Health Survey, 2013. / Desigualdades sociais na prevalência de indicadores de envelhecimento ativo na população brasileira: Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde, 2013.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze social inequalities in the prevalence of indicators of active aging in the Brazilian older adult population. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study with a sample of 11,177 older adults who participated in the Brazilian National Health Survey in 2013. We estimated the prevalence of five domains of active aging (social activities, civic engagement, leisure-time physical activity, paid work, and volunteer work) according to gender, ethnicity, schooling, income, and private health insurance. Prevalence ratios and confidence intervals were calculated using Poisson regression. RESULTS: The percentage of involvement in organized social activities, civic engagement, and physical activity was 25.1, 12.4, and 13.1%, respectively. Regarding work, 20.7% of the sample had a paid job, and 9.7% participated in volunteer work. Women had a higher prevalence of participation in organized social activities and volunteer work; while civic engagement and paid work were more frequent among men. White people were more likely to participate in social activities, volunteer work, and leisure-time physical activity, explained by their schooling. The strata with a higher level of schooling, income, and who had private health insurance showed a greater incidence of participation in all activities studied. CONCLUSION: The five activities analyzed are challenging for the proposed policy of active aging, as they are marked by considerable social inequality.

OBJETIVO: Analisar desigualdades sociais na prevalência de indicadores de envelhecimento ativo na população idosa brasileira. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal com amostra de 11.177 idosos que participaram da Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Brasil em 2013. Estimaram-se as prevalências de cinco domínios do envelhecimento ativo (atividades sociais, participação cívica, atividade física de lazer, trabalho remunerado e trabalho voluntário) segundo sexo, raça/cor, escolaridade, renda e posse de plano privado de saúde. As razões de prevalência e os intervalos de confiança foram calculados pela regressão de Poisson. RESULTADOS: O percentual de envolvimento em atividades sociais organizadas, participação cívica e atividade física foi de 25,1; 12,4 e 13,1%, respectivamente. Em relação ao trabalho, 20,7% exerciam trabalho remunerado e 9,7% participavam de trabalho voluntário. As mulheres apresentaram maiores prevalências de participação em atividades sociais organizadas e em trabalho voluntário; e entre os homens prevaleceu a participação cívica e o trabalho remunerado. Entre os brancos, foram observadas maiores frequências de participação em atividades sociais, trabalho voluntário e atividade física de lazer, explicadas pela escolaridade. E os estratos com maior nível de escolaridade, renda e com posse de plano privado de saúde apresentaram maiores prevalências de participação em todas as atividades consideradas. CONCLUSÃO: As cinco atividades analisadas se apresentam como desafiadoras à proposta política de envelhecimento ativo por serem marcadas por considerável desigualdade social.

Implementing sensor technology applications for workplace health promotion: a needs assessment among workers with physically demanding work.

BACKGROUND: Workers with physically demanding work may be at risk for injury, illness or other adverse health outcomes due to exposure to different occupational hazards, especially at higher age. Sensor technology applications may be useful in the workplace to unobtrusively measure and monitor work exposures and provide workers with real-time feedback or access to data on demand. Many aspects might impede the implementation of sensor technology applications in the workplace, which should be taken into consideration for a successful implementation. Moreover, needs and preferences of workers regarding the use of sensor technology applications during work performance need to be identified. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify worker needs and preferences regarding the use of sensor technology applications in the workplace. METHODS: Four on-site focus group sessions were conducted in four different companies among workers with physically demanding work (n = 30). Semi-structured interview schedules were used to identify which work exposures should be measured, by which kind of sensor technology applications, under which (pre)conditions, how to motivate long-term use of sensor technology applications, and which type of feedback is preferred. For data analysis, a content-analysis with an inductive approach was performed. RESULTS: Participants mentioned that they want to use wearable sensor technology applications to measure and monitor physical job demands, occupational heat stress, noise and fatigue. Factors associated with quality, comfort and perceived ease of use were identified as potential barriers for implementation in the workplace. Long-term motivation was attributed to the ability to manage and monitor work exposures, positive feedback and data ownership. Participants indicated a need to both receive real-time feedback and access to data on demand. CONCLUSIONS: Sensor technology applications may support workers with physically demanding work to measure and monitor their work exposures. Potential barriers for implementation such as privacy aspects and quality, comfort and perceived ease of use of sensor technology applications need to be well considered to ensure successful implementation of sensor technology applications in the workplace.

RGB-D ergonomic assessment system of adopted working postures.

Ensuring a healthier working environment is of utmost importance for companies and global health organizations. In manufacturing plants, the ergonomic assessment of adopted working postures is indispensable to avoid risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. This process receives high research interest and requires extracting plausible postural information as a preliminary step. This paper presents a semi-automated end-to-end ergonomic assessment system of adopted working postures. The proposed system analyzes the human posture holistically, does not rely on any attached markers, uses low cost depth technologies and leverages the state-of-the-art deep learning techniques. In particular, we train a deep convolutional neural network to analyze the articulated posture and predict body joint angles from a single depth image. The proposed method relies on learning from synthetic training images to allow simulating several physical tasks, different body shapes and rendering parameters and obtaining a highly generalizable model. The corresponding ground truth joint angles have been generated using a novel inverse kinematics modeling stage. We validated the proposed system in real environments and achieved a joint angle mean absolute error (MAE) of 3.19±1.57∘ and a rapid upper limb assessment (RULA) grand score prediction accuracy of 89% with Kappa index of 0.71 which means substantial agreement with reference scores. This work facilities evaluating several ergonomic assessment metrics as it provides direct access to necessary postural information overcoming the need for computationally expensive post-processing operations.

A user-centred assessment of a less-lethal launcher: the case of the FN 303® in a high-pressure setting.

The present study explored the usability of a less-lethal launcher from the end-user's perspective. A within-subjects field experiment (N = 16) tested the FN 303® in a lab condition, enabling optimal firing conditions and in a high-pressure simulated operational condition (SOC). Results showed that the high-pressure SOC, which was both psychologically and physiologically challenging, provoked significantly more subjective workload and substantial increases in cortisol biomarker secretion. Importantly, the SOC had a deleterious effect on participants' shooting accuracy at a static target at 30 m. Moreover, as might be expected, accuracy was affected, notably in the hazardous vertical y-axis. Finally, the SOC significantly influenced participants' perception of the overall usability of the FN 303®. These findings, combined with reduced accuracy, could become critical factors during real-life crowd control operations. To the authors' knowledge, no empirical work has tested less-lethal launchers from an end-user's perspective. Recommendations are made with regard to the selection, training, skill maintenance, and design.

Worker heat stress prevention and work metabolism estimation: comparing two assessment methods of the heart rate thermal component.

The heart rate thermal component ( ΔHRT ) can increase with body heat accumulation and lead to work metabolism (WM) overestimation. We used two methods (VOGT and KAMP) to assess ΔHRT of 35 forest workers throughout their work shifts, then compared ΔHRT at work and at rest using limits of agreement (LoA). Next, for a subsample of 20 forest workers, we produced corrected WM estimates from ΔHRT and compared them to measured WM. Although both methods produced significantly different ΔHRT time-related profiles, they yielded comparable average thermal cardiac reactivity (VOGT: 24.8 bpm °C-1; KAMP: 24.5 bpm °C-1), average ΔHRT (LoA: 0.7 ± 11.2 bpm) and average WM estimates (LoA: 0.2 ± 3.4 ml O2 kg-1min-1 for VOGT, and 0.0 ± 5.4 ml O2 kg-1min-1 for KAMP). Both methods are suitable to assess heat stress through ΔHRT and improve WM estimation. Practitioner summary: We compared two methods for assessing the heart rate thermal component ( ΔHRT ), which is needed to produce a corrected HR profile for estimating work metabolism (WM). Both methods yielded similar ΔHRT estimates that allowed accurate estimations of heat stress and WM at the group level, but they were imprecise at the individual level. Abbreviations: AIC: akaike information criterion; bpm: beats per minute; CI: confidence intervals; CV: coefficient of variation in %; CV drift: cardiovascular drift; ΔHRT: the heart rate thermal component in bpm; ΔHRT: the heart rate thermal component in bpm; ΔΔHRT: variation in the heart rate thermal component in bpm; ΔTC: variation in core body temperature in °C; HR: heart rate in bpm; HRmax: maximal heart rate in bpm; Icl: cloting insulation in clo; KAMP: Kampmann et al. (2001) method to determe ΔHRT; LoA: Limits of Agreement; PMV-PPD: the Predicted Mean Vote and Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied; PHS: Predicted Heat Strain model; RCM: random coefficients model; SD: standard deviation; TC: core body temperature in °C; TCR: thermal cardiac reactivity in bpm °C-1; τΔHRT: rate of change in the heart rate thermal component in bpm min-1; τTC: rate of change in core body temperature in °C min-1; tα,n-1: Student's t statistic with level of confidence alpha and n-1 degrees of freedom; TWL: Thermal Work Limit model; V̇O2 : oxygen consumption in ml O2 kg-1 min-1; V̇O2 max: maximal oxygen consumption in ml O2 kg-1 min-1; VOGT: Vogt et al. (1973) method to determine ΔHRT; WBGT: Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature in °C; WM: work metabolism.

Rapid office strain assessment (ROSA): Cross cultural validity, reliability and structural validity of the Brazilian-Portuguese version.

Forty-three occupational health professionals (observers) and 90 workers were enrolled in this study to perform the cross-cultural adaptation of the Rapid Office Strain Assessment into Brazilian Portuguese (ROSA-Br) and evaluate its psychometric properties. After cross-cultural adaptation, the measurement properties were checked in three stages: study 1: pre-testing (27 observers rated 15 office worker videos), study 2: intra- and inter-observer reliability (26 observers rated 15 office worker videos), and study 3: validity and accuracy of ROSA-Br final scores (90 office workers). For the ROSA scores, acceptable intraclass correlation coefficients were found for 75% and 86% of the intra-observer reliability comparisons for non-trained and trained observers, respectively, and for 100% of the inter-observer reliability comparisons (0.43-0.86). For construct validity, moderate correlations were observed for 70% of the comparisons between ROSA final scores and other ergonomic instruments. Moderate accuracy was observed for a ROSA-Br final score of 6 (AUC [area under the curve] = 0.72, 0.89). Taken together, these results support the use of the ROSA-Br for ergonomic field assessments and research.

Desigualdades sociais na prevalência de indicadores de envelhecimento ativo na população brasileira: Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde, 2013 / Social inequalities in the prevalence of indicators of active aging in the Brazilian population: National Health Survey, 2013

RESUMO: Objetivo: Analisar desigualdades sociais na prevalência de indicadores de envelhecimento ativo na população idosa brasileira. Métodos: Estudo transversal com amostra de 11.177 idosos que participaram da Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Brasil em 2013. Estimaram-se as prevalências de cinco domínios do envelhecimento ativo (atividades sociais, participação cívica, atividade física de lazer, trabalho remunerado e trabalho voluntário) segundo sexo, raça/cor, escolaridade, renda e posse de plano privado de saúde. As razões de prevalência e os intervalos de confiança foram calculados pela regressão de Poisson. Resultados: O percentual de envolvimento em atividades sociais organizadas, participação cívica e atividade física foi de 25,1; 12,4 e 13,1%, respectivamente. Em relação ao trabalho, 20,7% exerciam trabalho remunerado e 9,7% participavam de trabalho voluntário. As mulheres apresentaram maiores prevalências de participação em atividades sociais organizadas e em trabalho voluntário; e entre os homens prevaleceu a participação cívica e o trabalho remunerado. Entre os brancos, foram observadas maiores frequências de participação em atividades sociais, trabalho voluntário e atividade física de lazer, explicadas pela escolaridade. E os estratos com maior nível de escolaridade, renda e com posse de plano privado de saúde apresentaram maiores prevalências de participação em todas as atividades consideradas. Conclusão: As cinco atividades analisadas se apresentam como desafiadoras à proposta política de envelhecimento ativo por serem marcadas por considerável desigualdade social.

ABSTRACT: Objective: To analyze social inequalities in the prevalence of indicators of active aging in the Brazilian older adult population. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with a sample of 11,177 older adults who participated in the Brazilian National Health Survey in 2013. We estimated the prevalence of five domains of active aging (social activities, civic engagement, leisure-time physical activity, paid work, and volunteer work) according to gender, ethnicity, schooling, income, and private health insurance. Prevalence ratios and confidence intervals were calculated using Poisson regression. Results: The percentage of involvement in organized social activities, civic engagement, and physical activity was 25.1, 12.4, and 13.1%, respectively. Regarding work, 20.7% of the sample had a paid job, and 9.7% participated in volunteer work. Women had a higher prevalence of participation in organized social activities and volunteer work; while civic engagement and paid work were more frequent among men. White people were more likely to participate in social activities, volunteer work, and leisure-time physical activity, explained by their schooling. The strata with a higher level of schooling, income, and who had private health insurance showed a greater incidence of participation in all activities studied. Conclusion: The five activities analyzed are challenging for the proposed policy of active aging, as they are marked by considerable social inequality.

Active aging: prevalence and gender and age differences in a population-based study. / Envelhecimento ativo: prevalência e diferenças de gênero e idade em estudo de base populacional.

The aim of this study was to analyze prevalence rates and gender and age differences in indicators of active aging in elders participating in the Campinas Municipal Health Survey in Campinas, São Paulo State, Brazil (2014-2015). We estimated prevalence rates for participation by the elderly in twelve activities pertaining to four dimensions and calculated the prevalence ratios with Poisson regression. The study population consisted of 986 elderly. The results showed that 40.2% of the elderly participated in sociocultural activities, 25.3% were physically active in their leisure time, 21.7% used the Internet, 22.1% performed paid work, and only 2.6% were taking courses. In the social dimension, the only gender difference was in religious practice, which was less prevalent in men (PR = 0.67). In the dimension of physical activity, men were more active at work (PR = 2.10), in commuting (PR = 1.61), and in their leisure time (PR = 1.44). There was no gender difference in the intellectual dimension, and men were more active in paid work, (PR = 1.78). The analyses by age brackets showed that in men, only physical activity at work and paid work presented lower prevalence in the group eighty years and older. Among the oldest elderly women, lower prevalence rates were seen in six activities, which suggests a possible differential effect of advanced age between the sexes. The results show important rates of participation by elderly in some indicators of active aging, besides challenges in activities that are performed rarely and gender differences in participation.

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar as prevalências e as diferenças de gênero e idade em indicadores de envelhecimento ativo entre idosos participantes do Inquérito de Saúde do Município de Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil, 2014-2015. Estimaram-se as prevalências de participação dos idosos em doze atividades relativas a quatro dimensões, e as razões de prevalência foram calculadas pela regressão de Poisson. A população de estudo foi composta por 986 idosos. Os resultados revelaram que 40,2% dos idosos participavam de atividades socioculturais, 25,3% eram fisicamente ativos no lazer, 21,7% usavam a Internet, 22,1% exerciam trabalho remunerado e apenas 2,6% realizavam cursos. Quanto à dimensão social, só houve diferença entre os sexos na frequência aos cultos religiosos, sendo menos prevalente entre os homens (RP = 0,67). Na dimensão da atividade física, os homens eram mais ativos no trabalho (RP = 2,10), no deslocamento (RP = 1,61) e no lazer (RP = 1,44). Na dimensão intelectual, não houve diferença entre os sexos e, em relação ao trabalho remunerado, os homens eram mais ativos (RP = 1,78). As análises segundo faixas etárias evidenciaram que, entre os homens, apenas a prática de atividade física no trabalho e o exercício de trabalho remunerado apresentaram menor prevalência no grupo de 80 anos e mais. Entre as mulheres mais longevas, foram identificadas menores prevalências em seis atividades, o que sinaliza possível efeito diverso do avanço da idade entre os sexos. Os resultados revelam expressiva participação dos idosos em alguns dos indicadores do envelhecimento ativo e os desafios no que concerne às atividades pouco realizadas e às diferenças de participação entre os sexos.

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las tasas de prevalencia y las diferencias de género y edad en los indicadores de envejecimiento activo en adultos mayores que participan en la Encuesta de Salud del Municipio de Campinas, estado de São Paulo, Brasil (2014-2015). Estimamos las tasas de prevalencia para la participación de los ancianos en doce actividades relacionadas con cuatro dimensiones y calculamos las tasas de prevalencia con la regresión de Poisson. La población de estudio consistió en 986 ancianos. Los resultados mostraron que el 40,2% de los adultos mayores participaban en actividades socioculturales, el 25,3% era físicamente activo en su tiempo libre, el 21,7% utilizaba Internet, el 22,1% realizaba trabajo remunerado y solo el 2,6% asistía a cursos. En la dimensión social, la única diferencia de género estaba en la práctica religiosa, que era menos frecuente en los hombres (RP = 0,67). En la dimensión de la actividad física, los hombres eran más activos en el trabajo (PR = 2,10), en los desplazamientos diarios (PR = 1,61) y en su tiempo libre (PR = 1,44). No hubo diferencia de género en la dimensión intelectual, y los hombres eran más activos en el trabajo remunerado, (PR = 1,78). Los análisis por grupos de edad mostraron que en los hombres, solo la actividad física en el trabajo y el trabajo remunerado presentaron una prevalencia más baja en el grupo de 80 años y más. Entre las mujeres ancianas de mayor edad, se observaron tasas de prevalencia más bajas en seis actividades, lo que sugiere un posible efecto diferencial de la edad avanzada entre los sexos. Los resultados muestran tasas importantes de participación de personas mayores en algunos indicadores de envejecimiento activo, además de desafíos en actividades que se realizan con poca frecuencia y diferencias de género en la participación.

Uncertainty in monetary cost estimates for assessing working postures using inclinometry, observation or self-report.

OBJECTIVE: To assess uncertainty in cost estimates for collecting posture data by inclinometry, observations and self-report. METHOD: In a study addressing physical workloads at a paper mill, costs were calculated for measuring postures of twenty-eight workers during three shifts. Uncertainty in costs was assessed for all three methods as the range between an assumed best case (lowest cost) and worst case (highest cost) using scenario analysis. RESULTS: The cost for observation was larger, but also more uncertain (€16506 and €89552 in the best and worst case, respectively) than that of inclinometry (€7613 - €45896). Self-report costs were both lower and less uncertain (€3743 - €23368). CONCLUSIONS: The extent of uncertainty in cost estimates implies that observation could be less expensive than inclinometry, e.g., in a scenario where experienced observers could use existing software, while inclinometers would have to be purchased. We propose adding uncertainty assessments to cost estimates when selecting a method for measuring working postures, and offer guidance in how to proceed in a specific setting.

Objective assessment of knife sharpness over a working day cutting meat.

Knife sharpness is one of multiple factors involved in musculoskeletal disorders in industrial meat cutting. The aim of this study was to objectively evaluate, in real working situations, how knife sharpness changed over a working day cutting meat, and to analyse the impact of sharpening, steeling and meat-cutting activities on these variations. Twenty-two meat-cutting workers from three different companies participated in the study. The methods included measurements of knife sharpness in relation to real work situations and consideration of the way meat-cutting and sharpening operations were organised. Results showed that the type of meat-cutting activities, the steeling strategy adopted by the worker, including the types of tool used, and the overall organisation of the sharpening task all had a significant influence on how knife sharpness evolved over a 2-h period and over an entire working day. To improve MSD prevention, sharpening and steeling operations should not be considered as independent activities, but taken into account as a continuity of working actions. Appropriate assessment of knife sharpness by meat cutters affects how they organise meat-cutting and sharpening tasks.

Envelhecimento ativo: prevalência e diferenças de gênero e idade em estudo de base populacional / Envejecimiento activo: prevalencia y diferencias de género y edad en estudio de base poblacional / Active aging: prevalence and gender and age differences in a population-based study

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar as prevalências e as diferenças de gênero e idade em indicadores de envelhecimento ativo entre idosos participantes do Inquérito de Saúde do Município de Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil, 2014-2015. Estimaram-se as prevalências de participação dos idosos em doze atividades relativas a quatro dimensões, e as razões de prevalência foram calculadas pela regressão de Poisson. A população de estudo foi composta por 986 idosos. Os resultados revelaram que 40,2% dos idosos participavam de atividades socioculturais, 25,3% eram fisicamente ativos no lazer, 21,7% usavam a Internet, 22,1% exerciam trabalho remunerado e apenas 2,6% realizavam cursos. Quanto à dimensão social, só houve diferença entre os sexos na frequência aos cultos religiosos, sendo menos prevalente entre os homens (RP = 0,67). Na dimensão da atividade física, os homens eram mais ativos no trabalho (RP = 2,10), no deslocamento (RP = 1,61) e no lazer (RP = 1,44). Na dimensão intelectual, não houve diferença entre os sexos e, em relação ao trabalho remunerado, os homens eram mais ativos (RP = 1,78). As análises segundo faixas etárias evidenciaram que, entre os homens, apenas a prática de atividade física no trabalho e o exercício de trabalho remunerado apresentaram menor prevalência no grupo de 80 anos e mais. Entre as mulheres mais longevas, foram identificadas menores prevalências em seis atividades, o que sinaliza possível efeito diverso do avanço da idade entre os sexos. Os resultados revelam expressiva participação dos idosos em alguns dos indicadores do envelhecimento ativo e os desafios no que concerne às atividades pouco realizadas e às diferenças de participação entre os sexos.

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las tasas de prevalencia y las diferencias de género y edad en los indicadores de envejecimiento activo en adultos mayores que participan en la Encuesta de Salud del Municipio de Campinas, estado de São Paulo, Brasil (2014-2015). Estimamos las tasas de prevalencia para la participación de los ancianos en doce actividades relacionadas con cuatro dimensiones y calculamos las tasas de prevalencia con la regresión de Poisson. La población de estudio consistió en 986 ancianos. Los resultados mostraron que el 40,2% de los adultos mayores participaban en actividades socioculturales, el 25,3% era físicamente activo en su tiempo libre, el 21,7% utilizaba Internet, el 22,1% realizaba trabajo remunerado y solo el 2,6% asistía a cursos. En la dimensión social, la única diferencia de género estaba en la práctica religiosa, que era menos frecuente en los hombres (RP = 0,67). En la dimensión de la actividad física, los hombres eran más activos en el trabajo (PR = 2,10), en los desplazamientos diarios (PR = 1,61) y en su tiempo libre (PR = 1,44). No hubo diferencia de género en la dimensión intelectual, y los hombres eran más activos en el trabajo remunerado, (PR = 1,78). Los análisis por grupos de edad mostraron que en los hombres, solo la actividad física en el trabajo y el trabajo remunerado presentaron una prevalencia más baja en el grupo de 80 años y más. Entre las mujeres ancianas de mayor edad, se observaron tasas de prevalencia más bajas en seis actividades, lo que sugiere un posible efecto diferencial de la edad avanzada entre los sexos. Los resultados muestran tasas importantes de participación de personas mayores en algunos indicadores de envejecimiento activo, además de desafíos en actividades que se realizan con poca frecuencia y diferencias de género en la participación.

The aim of this study was to analyze prevalence rates and gender and age differences in indicators of active aging in elders participating in the Campinas Municipal Health Survey in Campinas, São Paulo State, Brazil (2014-2015). We estimated prevalence rates for participation by the elderly in twelve activities pertaining to four dimensions and calculated the prevalence ratios with Poisson regression. The study population consisted of 986 elderly. The results showed that 40.2% of the elderly participated in sociocultural activities, 25.3% were physically active in their leisure time, 21.7% used the Internet, 22.1% performed paid work, and only 2.6% were taking courses. In the social dimension, the only gender difference was in religious practice, which was less prevalent in men (PR = 0.67). In the dimension of physical activity, men were more active at work (PR = 2.10), in commuting (PR = 1.61), and in their leisure time (PR = 1.44). There was no gender difference in the intellectual dimension, and men were more active in paid work, (PR = 1.78). The analyses by age brackets showed that in men, only physical activity at work and paid work presented lower prevalence in the group eighty years and older. Among the oldest elderly women, lower prevalence rates were seen in six activities, which suggests a possible differential effect of advanced age between the sexes. The results show important rates of participation by elderly in some indicators of active aging, besides challenges in activities that are performed rarely and gender differences in participation.

Validation of an ergonomic assessment method using Kinect data in real workplace conditions.

Evaluating potential musculoskeletal disorders risks in real workstations is challenging as the environment is cluttered, which makes it difficult to accurately assess workers' postures. Being marker-free and calibration-free, Microsoft Kinect is a promising device although it may be sensitive to occlusions. We propose and evaluate a RULA ergonomic assessment in real work conditions using recently published occlusion-resistant Kinect skeleton data correction. First, we compared postures estimated with this method to ground-truth data, in standardized laboratory conditions. Second, we compared RULA scores to those provided by two professional experts, in a non-laboratory cluttered workplace condition. The results show that the corrected Kinect data can provide more accurate RULA grand scores, even under sub-optimal conditions induced by the workplace environment. This study opens new perspectives in musculoskeletal risk assessment as it provides the ergonomists with 30 Hz continuous information that could be analyzed offline and in a real-time framework.

Assessment of energy balance against the nutritional status of women carriers in the brickfields of West Bengal.

The Indian brick industry is an unorganized sector in which large numbers of migrant women workers are employed. A survey was conducted on 62 women workers working in different brickfields of West Bengal to assess their physiological workload, nutritional profile, total energy expenditure and energy balance. Energy intake was calculated using physiological fuel values of carbohydrate, fat and protein. From the results it is seen that 13% of the sample population falls under severe (grade III) chronic energy deficiency. The average daily consumption of the workers was comparatively lower than their daily energy expenditure, considering the nature of the job which falls under heavy to extremely heavy categories. This negative energy balance is effectively observed in the nutritional anthropometry data. Thus, an immediate ergonomics intervention with better nutrition should be implemented to improve the health status of the workers so they can safely continue to work for a longer period.