A Survey of Work-Related Pain Prevalence Among Construction Workers in Hong Kong: A Case-Control Study.

Construction workers undertake demanding physical work and face high risk of injuries in poor working environments. This case-control study investigated the extent of their musculoskeletal pain incidence at work. A total of 2021 construction workers in different trades were interviewed on-site in a survey from December 2017 to December 2018. The survey results revealed that the pain prevalence of the subjects in the last 24 h was 10.6 %. The worst and top most common pain spots caused by work were central lower back, left/right shoulders, and knees. Regarding pain management, their most common method was to ignore the pain (21.4%). The average percentage of pain relief after receiving treatment in the 24 h was 37.12%. Besides, significant differences were found between the pain and non-pain groups regarding their employment duration in current job or their average sleep duration in the 24 h. The study showed that those with multiple and bilateral pain sites had pain interference on their living activities.

Caracterização do processo de rigor mortis e da maciez dos músculos Gastrocnemius e pectoralis e efeito da radiação gama na vida comercial da carne de peru (Meleagris gallopavo) / Caracterización del proceso de rigor mortis y de la blandura de los músculos Gastrocnemius y pectoralis y del efecto de la radiación gamma en la vida comercial de la carne de pavo (Meleagris gallopavo) / Characterization of rigor mortis process and meat tenderness of Gastrocnemius and pectoralis muscles and effect of gamma rays on the shelf life of turkey meat (Meleagris gallopavo)

A qualidade da carne dos animais de açougue sofre ação direta do processo de rigor mortis. O processo de irradiação tem como objetivo aumentar o prazo de vida comercial dos alimentos, como as carnes. Foram realizadas análises, nos intervalos de 0,25h; 1,5h; 2,5h; 6,0h e 18,5h após a sangria, para a caracterização do processo de rigor mortis nos músculos Gastrocnemius e Pectoralis de nove perus machos da marca ?Britsh United Turkey of América ? BUTA?, abatidos em matadouro frigorífico sob Inspeção Federal. Os peitos com osso foram congelados a -18oC. Nesse período foram realizadas análises bacteriológicas, determinações físicas, químicas e análises sensoriais, aos 5, 180, 360 e 540 dias de estocagem. O tratamento estatístico dos dados demonstrou que, durante o resfriamento industrial das carcaças, a temperatura da câmara, temperatura das carcaças e o pH decresceram gradualmente. A contração máxima do sarcômero ocorreu em 15 minutos após a sangria. A partir de então, aumentou significativamente, correspondendo aos maiores valores da força de cisalhamento, o que atende aos padrões estabelecidos em outras aves domésticas. As outras análises foram realizadas considerando duas variáveis: tipo de método de conservação (congelamento, congelamento e irradiação com 1 kGy e congelamento e irradiação com 3 kGy) e o tempo de estocagem (5, 180, 360 e 540 dias). As contagens de bactérias psicrotróficas e enumeração de Enterococcus spp. aumentaram durante o tempo de estocagem, porém, por efeito da radiação, a contagem foi menor, principalmente nas amostras submetidas à dose de 3kGy. Os valores de atividade de água não foram diferentes em relação à irradiação e ao tempo de estocagem. O teste de sanidade revelou que a carne permaneceu apta para o consumo até o final do experimento. No início da estocagem, a radiação gama contribuiu para diminuir a aceitação sensorial do sabor da carne, principalmente quando submetida à dose de 3 kGy, sendo confirmada como ...

Amperometric biosensor for determining human salivary phosphate.

An amperometric biosensor was constructed for analysis of human salivary phosphate without sample pretreatment. The biosensor was constructed by immobilizing pyruvate oxidase (PyOD) on a screen-printed electrode. The presence of phosphate in the sample causes the enzymatic generation of hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), which was monitored by a potentiostat and was in proportion to the concentration of human salivary phosphate. The sensor shows response within 2s after the addition of standard solution or sample and has a short recovery time (2 min). The time required for one measurement using this phosphate biosensor was 4 min, which was faster than the time required using a commercial phosphate testing kit (10 min). The sensor has a linear range from 7.5 to 625 microM phosphate with a detection limit of 3.6 microM. A total of 50 salivary samples were collected for the determination of phosphate. A good level of agreement (R(2)=0.9646) was found between a commercial phosphate testing kit and the phosphate sensor. This sensor maintained a high working stability (>85%) after 12h operation and required only a simple operation procedure. The amperometric biosensor using PyOD is a simple and accurate tool for rapid determinations of human salivary phosphate, and it explores the application of biosensors in oral and dental research and diagnosis.