No abstract

Since the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has spread worldwide, healthcare workers—resident physicians in particular—have been hugely involved in facing the COVID-19 pandemic, experiencing unprecedented challenges in fighting the disease. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of poor sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, and alterations in mood state profiles in this category. This cross-sectional study, conducted in 2020, enrolled 119 subjects from a university hospital in southern Italy. Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaires were administered to physicians divided into four areas: anesthesiology, medicine, service, and surgery. In the overall sample, approximately 45% reported poor sleep quality, although only nine subjects (8%) reported an ESS score that suggested excessive daytime sleepiness. Alterations in mood profiles were also observed; the Vigor and Fatigue factors were the most altered. In particular, anesthesiologists seem to be the most affected category, showing a profound decrease in Vigor with a concomitant increase in Fatigue. Considering the possible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, preventive measures should be adopted, especially those aimed at facilitating a better turnover of physicians, optimizing the working schedule, and improving the organization of work.

Work organization, such as shifts and night work, can interfere with the perception of work-related stress and therefore on the development of pathological conditions. Night shift work, particularly, can have a negative impact on workers’ wellbeing by interfering with the biological sphere. The aim of this study is to evaluate the associations between work activities, shift work effects and stress-related responses in 106 dock workers enrolled in southeast Italy. Dock workers’ tasks consist of complex activities that seemed to affect more sleep quality than work-related stress. An analysis of salivary biomarkers such as cortisol, α-amylase, melatonin and lysozyme was performed along with validated psycho-diagnostic questionnaires. Alpha-amylase showed a significant negative correlation with the effort/reward imbalance score; thus, the measurement of salivary α-amylase is proposed as a sensitive and non-invasive biomarker of work-related stress. This study may provide new insights into developing strategies for the management of night shift work. Salivary biomarkers should be further investigated in the future in order to develop simple and effective tools for the early diagnosis of work-related stress or its outcomes.

The phyto complex under consideration is an effective tool to counter, in a quick and long-lasting manner, the most common and nagging symptoms of the climacteric syndrome, such as hot flushes, insomnia and depression.

Background: Exposure to whole-body vibrations (WBV) represents a highly diffuse occupational risk. Some studies report that chronic exposure to WBV induces a significant increment in the modifications of the cognitive and emotional area. The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term effects of WBV exposure on the neuropsychic and behavioural system. Methods: The study population consisted of 137 male subjects, mean age 45.7 years, working as drivers of mechanical trolleys and occupationally exposed to WBV of a frequency below 2 m/s². The Profile of Mood States was administered to all subjects in a maximum time of 10 min and in the same operative conditions. The results were compared with those of a homogeneous control group by means of an innovative statistical technique. Results: The results show a significant difference in the response to the neurobehavioural test. The exposed group showed, in fact, a higher score compared with the controls for all 6 factors. In particular, the scores for factors F (fatigue-inertia), D (depression-dejection) and T (tension-anxiety) were more elevated, expressing a significant alteration of the psycho-affective status. Moreover, statistical analysis showed a correlation between exposure time and the score obtained for all factors in the exposed group. Conclusion: This study indicates that occupational exposure to WBV is associated with alterations of mood status and that these modifications are directly proportional to exposure time. Furthermore, our results show that psychological tests commonly used in psychopathologic diagnostics can be useful in monitoring alterations of psycho-emotional status determined by physical stressors.