Firefighting resulted in a significant increase in platelet number and aggregability, indicating that even short bouts of firefighting can increase thrombotic potential in apparently healthy firefighters.

The timeline for recovery from firefighting activities is significantly longer than the typical 10-20-minute rehabilitation period that often is provided on the fireground. Modifications from the current rehabilitation protocol do not appear to improve the recovery timeline when rehabilitation is conducted in a cool room. While firefighters often are concerned about elevated blood pressures, this study suggests that firefighters and EMS personnel should also be cognizant of the potential dangers of hypotension.

This study examined the following: effects of simulated firefighting (FF) activities under heat stress on sustained attention; whether incident rehabilitation (IR) influences performance; and relationships between performance, affect and personality. Firefighters performed ~18 min of FF. Attention, physiological, perceptual and psychological assessments were made before and after FF, IR and recovery. IR had no effects. Self-rated Energy increased, Tiredness decreased and Anxiety increased immediately post-FF; all returned to baseline 120 min post. The immediate effect of FF was faster reaction time (RT) followed by slowing after recovery. Perceived Energy at baseline was associated (p-values < 0.05) with faster and Tiredness with slower post-FF RTs; Accuracy was unaffected. Conscientiousness was negatively associated with RT before and 120 min following FF. RTs were faster following FF, accuracy was unchanged. Higher baseline Energy/lower Tiredness were associated with faster, less variable RTs at baseline and post-FF. Those with higher Conscientiousness had faster RTs. Research should further investigate higher-level cognitive processing following, or ideally during, FF.

A primary objective of the present study was to examine the effect of short-term live-fire firefighting activities on key physiological, perceptual and psychological variables and whether occupational status influenced these responses. It was also of interest to examine whether individual difference factors differentiated the occupational status groups and if so, whether such individual difference factors influenced perceptual and psychological responses to firefighting activities. Male firefighters (n = 52 career, n = 53 volunteer firefighters) participated in 18 min of simulated firefighting activity in a training structure that contained live fires. Measures of heart rate (HR) and T were obtained before and after firefighting activities along with perceptions of thermal sensations, exertion, respiratory distress and affect. Firefighting activities resulted in significant elevations in HR and T , whereas thermal sensations, respiratory distress, exertion and affect all showed significant and sizable changes reflecting greater distress and dysphoria. Occupational status and individual difference factors accounted for some of this negative change. The findings replicate and extend previous work by demonstrating the influence of occupational status and individual difference factors in the psychological responses to firefighting activity. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

No abstract