Protective Measures From Solar Ultraviolet Radiation for Beach Lifeguards in Tuscany (Italy): Shade and Clothing Strategies.

Background: The exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation is a significant risk factor generally underestimated by outdoor workers and employers. Several studies have pointed out that occupational solar exposure increased eye and skin diseases with a considerable impact on the lives and productivity of affected workers.The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness against ultraviolet radiation of some measures recently undertaken for the protection of lifeguards in a coastal area of Tuscany. Methods: Different shading structures (gazebos and beach umbrella) were tested during a sunny summer's day on a sandy beach by means of two radiometers; the UV protection offered by some T-shirts used by lifeguards was also tested in the laboratory with a spectrophotometer. Results: The analysed shading structures strongly reduced the ultraviolet radiation by up to 90%, however a not always negligible diffuse radiation is also present in the shade, requiring further protective measures (T-shirt, sunglasses, sunscreen, etc.); the tested T-shirts showed a very good-excellent protection according to the Australian/New Zealand standard. Conclusion: Results obtained in this study suggest how the adoption and dissemination of good practices, including those tested, could be particularly effective as a primary prevention for lifeguards who are subjected to very high levels of radiation for long periods.

[The evaluation of optical radiation hazards: methods, case studies and critical aspects]. / La valutazione dei rischi da radiazioni ottiche: metodi, casi studio, criticità.

SUMMARY: Purpose. Currents methods for the evaluation and control of optical radiation hazards at workplaces are presented. Methods. Safe exposure criteria that may be readily applied to practical situations are discussed. Hazard evaluation techniques are discussed for a number of intense optical radiation sources. Examples include arc welding, germicidal lamps in medical and laboratories activities, metal and glass melting. Results. Hazard data and PPE choice criteria are provided, taking account of varied critical aspects from the case studies discussed. Conclusions. Some critical aspects in the optical radiation safety management have been discussed. The improvement of protection programmes is needed to raise awareness of the health hazards of optical radiation, and to achieve the application of simple engineering controls and/or administrative controls aimed at ensuring that workers are made aware of the presence of potentially harmful optical radiation and providing information to avoid such harmful exposure, according to AOR Directive.

[Assessment of the risk due to exposure to EMF with particular reference to the protection of sensitive subjects]. / La valutazione del rischio da esposizione a CEM con particolare riguardo alla tutela dei soggetti sensibili.

SUMMARY: Purpose. The work illustrates useful elements for the risk assessment for workers exposed to electromagnetic fields, also in reference to sensitive subjects such as those with active implantable medical devices (AIMD). Methods. The approach introduced by Legislative Decree 81/08 for risk assessment does not explicitly include operational criteria and specific measures for the protection of sensitive subjects. In the case of workers with DMIA, the employer may refer to relevant harmonized technical standards. Results. They are shown the results of in vitro tests performed on pacemakers following the indications of the technical reference standard and employing sources of electromagnetic fields that, due to the type of signal emitted, do not allow to exclude an a priori influence on the operation of the device. Conclusions. Workers at particular risk are generally protected if the requirements established for the population are respected. This measure may, under certain conditions, not be sufficient,making it necessary to carry out more in-depth and individual assessments. However, the cases illustrated here for AIMD showed interference phenomena only in limited experimental configurations despite the levels of the electric and magnetic fields generated by the sources exceeding the limits for the general population.

Blue Light and Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure from Infant Phototherapy Equipment.

Phototherapy is the use of light for reducing the concentration of bilirubin in the body of infants. Although it has become a mainstay since its introduction in 1958, a better understanding of the efficacy and safety of phototherapy applications seems to be necessary for improved clinical practices and outcomes. This study was initiated to evaluate workers' exposure to Optical Radiation from different types of phototherapy devices in clinical use in Italy. During infant phototherapy the staff monitors babies periodically for around 10 min every hour, and fixation of the phototherapy beam light frequently occurs: almost all operators work within 30 cm of the phototherapy source during monitoring procedures, with most of them commonly working at ≤25 cm from the direct or reflected radiation beam. The results of this study suggest that there is a great variability in the spectral emission of equipments investigated, depending on the types of lamps used and some phototherapy equipment exposes operators to blue light photochemical retinal hazard. Some of the equipment investigated presents relevant spectral emission also in the UVA region. Taking into account that the exposure to UV in childhood has been established as an important contributing factor for melanoma risk in adults and considering the high susceptibility to UV-induced skin damage of the newborn, related to his pigmentary traits, the UV exposure of the infant during phototherapy should be "as low as reasonably achievable," considering that it is unnecessary to the therapy. It is recommended that special safety training be provided for the affected employees: in particular, protective eyewear can be necessary during newborn assistance activities carried out in proximity of some sources. The engineering design of phototherapy equipment can be optimized. Specific requirements for photobiological safety of lamps used in the phototherapy equipment should be defined in the safety product standard for such equipment.

Evaluation of human exposure to complex waveform magnetic fields generated by arc-welding equipment according to European safety standards.

In this paper, a procedure is described for the assessment of human exposure to magnetic fields with complex waveforms generated by arc-welding equipment. The work moves from the analysis of relevant guidelines and technical standards, underlining their strengths and their limits. Then, the procedure is described with particular attention to the techniques used to treat complex waveform fields. Finally, the procedure is applied to concrete cases encountered in the workplace. The discussion of the results highlights the critical points in the procedure, as well as those related to the evolution of the technical and exposure standards.

Occupational exposure to physical agents: the new Italian database for risk assessment and control.

This article presents the new Italian database of physical agents, which is available at http://www.portaleagentifisici.it. It supports in risk assessment employers who have to comply with Italy's Legislative Decree 81/2008 (transposing into law European Union Directives 2003/10/EC, 2002/44/EC, 2004/40/EC and 2006/25/EC). The database currently contains measurements and declared European Community (EC) values from over 2540 machines; in particular, the database hosts data on mechanical vibration from over 1430 hand-held power tools (e.g., pneumatic and electric hammers, chainsaws, grinders, drills, sanders and saws) and from over 1020 whole-body machines (e.g., buses, fork lifts and wheel tractors). The database is continuously updated as soon as new experimental and declared data are acquired.

Evaluation and characterization of fetal exposures to low frequency magnetic fields generated by laptop computers.

Portable - or "laptop" - computers (LCs) are widely and increasingly used all over the world. Since LCs are often used in tight contact with the body even by pregnant women, fetal exposures to low frequency magnetic fields generated by these units can occur. LC emissions are usually characterized by complex waveforms and are often generated by the main AC power supply (when connected) and by the display power supply sub-system. In the present study, low frequency magnetic field emissions were measured for a set of five models of portable computers. For each of them, the magnetic flux density was characterized in terms not just of field amplitude, but also of the so called "weighted peak" (WP) index, introduced in the 2003 ICNIRP Statement on complex waveforms and confirmed in the 2010 ICNIRP Guidelines for low frequency fields. For the model of LC presenting the higher emission, a deeper analysis was also carried out, using numerical dosimetry techniques to calculate internal quantities (current density and in-situ electric field) with reference to a digital body model of a pregnant woman. Since internal quantities have complex waveforms too, the concept of WP index was extended to them, considering the ICNIRP basic restrictions defined in the 1998 Guidelines for the current density and in the 2010 Guidelines for the in-situ electric field. Induced quantities and WP indexes were computed using an appropriate original formulation of the well known Scalar Potential Finite Difference (SPFD) numerical method for electromagnetic dosimetry in quasi-static conditions.