Exposures and reported symptoms associated with occupational deployment to the Buncefield fuel depot fire, England 2005

Morgan, Oliver; Verlander, Neville Q.; Kennedy, Fraser M; Moore, Michelle; Birch, Sophie; Kearney, Joe; Lewthwaite, Paul; Lewis, Robert W.; O'Brian, Steve; Osman, John; Reacher, Mark

doi:10.1136/oem.2007.035303

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Previous studies have demonstrated that ocular symptoms are a frequent finding in people exposed to the smoke generated by fires, including wildfires (12)(13)24) . During the acute episode, the patients who attended the hospital emergency room and the healthy volunteers experienced ocu lar symptoms, an increase in bulbar conjunctival hyperemia, and a reduction in TBUT values.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, the 8 hours average value was greater than the standard value recommended by the WHO Air Quality Guidelines (AQG) established by the World Health Organization (22) in 29 opportunities. For NO 2 and PM, average levels are usually not exceeding 50% of the maximum levels recommended by the WHO, but during the acute episode, the concentrations were twice as high as those recommended in the WHO guidelines (23)(24) .…”

Section: Pollutant Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impact of wildfire smoke in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on ocular surface

Berra¹,

Galperín²,

Dawidowski

et al. 2015

Arquivos Brasileiros De Oftalmologia

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Purpose: To evaluate the acute impact of the wildfire smoke episode in 2008 on the ocular surface of subjects living in the Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires (MABA). Methods: A total of 86 subjects were evaluated: Group 1 comprised patients from a public ophthalmology hospital (N=35) and Group 2 comprised healthy volunteers (N=51). All subjects answered a questionnaire on ocular symptoms and underwent ophthalmologic examination [bulbar conjunctival hyperemia, corneal fluorescein staining, rose bengal vital staining, tear break-up time (TBUT), Schirmer I test, tear lysozyme, and impression cytology] during and after the acute episode. Concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), and particulate matter (PM) were measured before, during, and after the acute episode. Results: Both groups showed a statically significant increase in ocular symptoms and bulbar conjunctival hyperemia and a statically significant decrease in tear break-up time during the acute episode. Group 1 showed more severe symptoms and a statistically significant increase in fluorescein and rose bengal staining intensities during the acute episode. We found a significant negative correlation between ocular symptoms and tear break-up time. During the episode, the levels of CO, NO 2 , and particulate matter in MABA were four times higher than the usual average levels for the same period in 2007 and 2009. Conclusions: Increased air pollution from the burning of biomass is associated with a decrease in the stability of the tear film (TBUT), generating areas of ocular surface exposure that may be the cause of the increased feeling of irritation. Group 1 was more affected by not having a healthy ocular surface, and thus consulted an ophthalmologist. Cytological changes in the conjunctiva were not observed, which could be due to the short duration of the episode.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Pollutant Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of wildfire smoke in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on ocular surface

Berra¹,

Galperín²,

Dawidowski

et al. 2015

Arquivos Brasileiros De Oftalmologia

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“…24 A risk assessment approach for blood borne infections and tetanus following bombings and mass-casualty events subsequently has been published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 25…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical Health of Members of the Public Who Experienced Terrorist Bombings in London on 07 July 2005

Catchpole¹,

Morgan²

2010

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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Introduction: On 07 July 2005, four bombs were detonated in London, killing 52 members of the public. Approximately 700 individuals received treatment either at the scene or at nearby hospitals. Hypothesis/Problem: Significant concerns about the potential long-term psychological and physical health effects of exposure to the explosions were raised immediately after the bombings. To address these concerns, a public health register was established for the purpose of following-up with individuals exposed to the explosions. Methods: Invitations to enroll in the register were sent to individuals exposed to the explosions. A range of health, emergency, and humanitarian service records relating to the response to the explosions were used to identify eligible individuals. Follow-up was undertaken through self-administered questionnaires. The number of patients exposed to fumes, smoke, dust, and who experienced blood splashes, individuals who reported injuries, and the type and duration of health symptoms were calculated. Odds ratios of health symptoms by exposure for greater or less than 30 minutes were calculated. Results: A total of 784 eligible individuals were identified, of whom, 258 (33%) agreed to participate in the register, and 173 (22%) returned completed questionnaires between 8 to 23 months after the explosions. The majority of individuals reported exposure to fumes, smoke, or dust, while more than two-fifths also reported exposure to blood. In addition to cuts and puncture wounds, the most frequent injury was ear damage. Most individuals experienced health symptoms for less than four weeks, with the exception of hearing problems, which lasted longer. Four-fifths of individuals felt that they had suffered emotional distress and half of them were receiving counseling. Conclusions:The results indicated that the main long-term health effects, apart from those associated with traumatic amputations, were hearing loss and psychological disorders. While these findings provide a degree of reassurance of the absence of long-term effects, the low response rate limits the extent to which this can be extrapolated to all those exposed to the bombings. Given the importance of immediate assessment of the range and type of exposure and injury in incidents such as the London bombings, and the difficulties in contacting individuals after the immediate response phase, there is need to develop better systems for identifying and enrolling exposed individuals into post-incident health monitoring. Catchpole MA, Morgan O: Physical health of members of the public who experienced terrorist bombings in London on 07 July 2005. Prehosp Disaster Afe/2010;25(2):139-144.

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The Use of Anthrax and Orthopox Therapeutic Antibodies from Human Origin in Biodefense

Stienstra¹

2010

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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s95 accidents with overexposure of both workers and the population. The threat of nuclear terrorism with possible negative consequences for the population is real. Medical triage of exposed individuals by the extent of required medical aid is critical in large-scale radiation emergencies. Medical triage is based on the prediction of acute radiation consequences by estimated exposure dose. Whereas physical dosimetry, which provides more accurate dose estimates, often is not feasible in the event of large-scale radiation accidents, especially within the first hours and even days after exposure, biological dosimetry is of special value. Thus, a scale of Radiation Injury Severity Classification (RISC) has been developed based on the recently available medical data on 59 workers in Russia and two in the US, who were exposed due to the short-term acute irradiation. The RISC scale includes clinical and hematological parameters for triage of acute radiation injuries into three prognostic categories: (1) survival probable; (2) survival possible; and (3) survival improbable. For in-situ testing of the RISC scale, 24 workers with the full clinical information for the first days after acute exposure have been selected. Eight physicians with limited training in assessment of radiation injuries have been recruited to test the scale. They have used the RISC scale to assign a numerical score to each of the 24 cases. Physicians have been able to classify appropriately 84% of cases. More importantly, they have correctly classified 96.8% of cases into a category of possible survival, i.e., those who would benefit of medical care. A more extensive in-situ testing is planned to validate these findings.

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Exposures and reported symptoms associated with occupational deployment to the Buncefield fuel depot fire, England 2005

Cited by 7 publications

References 9 publications

Impact of wildfire smoke in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on ocular surface

Impact of wildfire smoke in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on ocular surface

Physical Health of Members of the Public Who Experienced Terrorist Bombings in London on 07 July 2005

The Use of Anthrax and Orthopox Therapeutic Antibodies from Human Origin in Biodefense

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