Muscular, cardiorespiratory and thermal strain of mast and pole workers

Oksa, Juha; Hosio, Sanna; Mäkinen, Tero; Lindholm, Harri; Rintamäki, Hannu; Rissanen, Sirkka; Latvala, Jari; Vaara, Kimmo; Oksa, Panu

doi:10.1080/00140139.2014.895854

Cited by 7 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…A significant correlation between lowering mean skin temperature and increasing muscle strain was found for upper arm and lower back muscles. Thermal strain remained in a tolerable level but a significant correlation between mean skin and ambient temperature was found (Oksa et al 2014).…”

Section: Mast and Polementioning

confidence: 95%

“…Parkhouse and Gall (2004) reported that older powerline technicians (aged over 50 years) climbed up to masts less often than younger workers, but that this was offset by an increased amount of pulling and pushing work on the ground level. Quite recently a field study evaluated muscular, cardiovascular, and thermal strain of 14 mast and pole workers in a temperature range of -30 to 28°C (Oksa et al 2014). The study divided mast and pole work into 4 categories: work on ground, ascending to the mast, work on height, and descending from the mast.…”

Section: Mast and Polementioning

confidence: 99%

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Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards

Cheung

Lee

Oksa

2016

Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab.

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109

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Many physically demanding occupations in both developed and developing economies involve exposure to extreme thermal environments that can affect work capacity and ultimately health. Thermal extremes may be present in either an outdoor or an indoor work environment, and can be due to a combination of the natural or artificial ambient environment, the rate of metabolic heat generation from physical work, processes specific to the workplace (e.g., steel manufacturing), or through the requirement for protective clothing impairing heat dissipation. Together, thermal exposure can elicit acute impairment of work capacity and also chronic effects on health, greatly contributing to worker health risk and reduced productivity. Surprisingly, in most occupations even in developed economies, there are rarely any standards regarding enforced heat or cold safety for workers. Furthermore, specific physical employment standards or accommodations for thermal stressors are rare, with workers commonly tested under near-perfect conditions. This review surveys the major occupational impact of thermal extremes and existing employment standards, proposing guidelines for improvement and areas for future research.Key words: Heat stress, cold stress, occupational physiology, testing, work.Résumé : Plusieurs emplois physiquement exigeants dans les économies développées et en émergence s'exercent dans des milieux thermiques extrêmes qui peuvent affecter la capacité de travail et, en fin de compte, la santé. Ces milieux de condition thermique extrême se retrouvent dans des environnements de travail intérieur ou extérieur et peuvent découler d'une combinaison d'un milieu ambiant naturel ou artificiel, de la production de chaleur métabolique due au travail physique, des procédés spécifiques au milieu de travail (p. ex. fabrication de l'acier) ou du port obligatoire d'un équipement de protection s'opposant à la dissipation de la chaleur. Globalement, l'exposition à la chaleur peut diminuer ponctuellement la capacité de travail et générer des effets chroniques sur la santé, augmentant ainsi le risque de maladie chez le travailleur et la diminution de la productivité. Étonnamment, dans la plupart des emplois même dans les économies développées, il y a rarement, à propos du froid et de la chaleur, des normes de sécurité ou des règlements en vigueur à l'intention des travailleurs. De plus, rares sont les normes spécifiques aux tâches physiques ou les accommodations aux agents de stress thermique et les travailleurs sont généralement évalués dans des conditions presque parfaites. Cette analyse documentaire sonde les effets principaux des agents thermiques extrêmes sur les tâches physiques, fait le bilan des normes en vigueur en matière d'emploi, suggère des lignes directrices et des pistes pour des études ultérieures. [Traduit par la Rédaction] Mots-clés : stress thermique, stress dû au froid, physiologie du travail, évaluation, travail.

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Section: Mast and Polementioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Mast and Polementioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards

Cheung

Lee

Oksa

2016

Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab.

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109

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“…Cold injuries continue to be a challenge in modern military operations 138,139 and many other occupations. 3,4 Ultimately, a primary goal of research in CIVD is to be able to predict an individual's response to cold exposure, and to model the effects on performance and injury risk. This can be broken down into 2 components: 1) an a priori prediction for who may be at risk for cold injury, and 2) a model for thermal response during cold exposure.…”

Section: Modelingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Decrements in tactile sensitivity, manual dexterity, and gross motor function of the hands can lead to decreased overall performance in occupational settings, such as in mast and pole workers 3 and divers. 4 The rapid 5 and sustained 6,7 impairment of manual performance from local cold exposure can also degrade an individual's ability to operate emergency equipment (e.g., escape hatches, opening flares) or move into a safer situation (e.g., hauling oneself from the water into a liferaft), turning a survivable situation into a critical one.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of the hands and feet to cold exposure

Cheung

2015

Temperature

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An initial response to whole-body or local exposure of the extremities to cold is a strong vasoconstriction, leading to a rapid decrease in hand and foot temperature. This impairs tactile sensitivity, manual dexterity, and muscle contractile characteristics while increasing pain and sympathetic drive, decreasing gross motor function, occupational performance, and survival. A paradoxical and cyclical vasodilatation often occurs in the fingers, toes, and face, and this has been termed the hunting response or cold-induced vasodilatation (CIVD). Despite being described almost a century ago, the mechanisms of CIVD are still disputed; research in this area has remained largely descriptive in nature. Recent research into CIVD has brought increased standardization of methodology along with new knowledge about the impact of mediating factors such as hypoxia and physical fitness. Increasing mechanistic analysis of CIVD has also emerged along with improved modeling and prediction of CIVD responses. The present review will survey work conducted during this century on CIVD, its potential mechanisms and modeling, and also the broader context of manual function in cold conditions.

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“…Human cold response and adaptation have been studied among a variety of people and settings, including Arctic populations, outdoor and indoor occupations, leisure activities, and laboratory-controlled cold exposures (Levine et al, 1995;Galloway et al, 2000;Snodgrass et al, 2005Snodgrass et al, , 2006Mäkinen et al, 2006;Mäkinen, 2010;Näyhä et al, 2011;Oksa et al, 2014;Oliveira et al, 2014;Fumagalli et al, 2015;Ocobock, 2017;Levy et al, 2018). The outdoor occupations involving significant cold exposure include employment in resource industries (e.g., forestry, agriculture, fishing, hunting, the mining industry, and petroleum extraction) and all-season occupations (e.g., construction, military) (Jeong et al, 2009;Oksa et al, 2014;Pearce et al, 2015;Cheung et al, 2016;Elgstrand et al, 2017). Given their high levels of physical activity and exposure to the environment, reindeer herders are put at greater risk for cold injury during herding work.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Reindeer Herders Cope with Harsh Winter Conditions in Northern Finland: Insights from an Interview Study

Turunen¹,

Soppela²,

Ocobock³

2021

ARCTIC

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Reindeer herding involves hard physical work carried out in a cold climate under variable weather conditions. In the fall and winter, herders’ work in northern Finland includes collecting and moving reindeer herds to round-up sites, working in round-ups, slaughtering and processing meat as well as daily feeding and monitoring of the animals in the field. To study the experiences and perceptions of coping with cold among physically active herders in harsh winter conditions, we interviewed 22 herders from six herding districts of the central reindeer management area within the north boreal coniferous forest zone. We focused on behavioral and cultural strategies that accompany the physiological cold adaptations. Semi-structured interviews revealed that the main behavioral and cultural strategies used by herders to successfully carry out their duties while avoiding cold-related injury include clothing, physical activity, nutrition, and shelter as well as protecting vehicles and devices. Herders across sex, age, and herding district reported using modern layered clothing developed for extreme conditions, often combined with traditional footwear and clothes made of reindeer fur or woollen fabric. In addition, herders increase their physical activity; eat warm, energy-rich foods; make fires; stay overnight or take breaks in a house or a cabin, a car, or other protected places to reduce exposure to the harsh environment. Coping with extreme conditions not only requires flexibility, preparedness, and innovation from the herders but also thoughtful caution when approaching and managing unexpected situations. We conclude that modernization of reindeer husbandry, climate change, and rapidly increasing land use competition not only drive herders to modify their behavioral and cultural coping mechanisms for extreme weather conditions but may also create new, unexpected vulnerabilities.

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Muscular, cardiorespiratory and thermal strain of mast and pole workers

Cited by 7 publications

References 11 publications

Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards

Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards

Responses of the hands and feet to cold exposure

How Reindeer Herders Cope with Harsh Winter Conditions in Northern Finland: Insights from an Interview Study

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