INTRODUCTION TO

OCCUPATIONAL DISEASE I
MODULE 2
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH

Dr. Tajuddin Bantacut
DEPARTEMENT OF AGROINDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY
BOGOR AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY
A human being is not only a body or a combination
of organs, but also a living unit, both body and soul
(conscience), and a social being that interacts
actively with his or her environment.

It is a complex biological machine that has just
acquired new insights about the way the world
works.

Physical and mental processes have remained
largely unchanged while the environment created by
us has changed from the primitive Stone Age
existence to one of modern technology and control.
The acquisition of this new technology brought
about new diseases as result of our new
discoveries.

How we are killing ourselves:
(i) by our own careless habits;
(ii) by carelessly polluting the environment; and
(iii) by permitting social conditions to persist -
conditions like poverty, hunger and ignorance -
which destroy health especially for infants and
children (The Surgeon General of the United
States Federal Health Service)


Definitions of Occupational Disease
Occupational diseases stand at one end of
the spectrum of work relatedness where
the relationship to specific causative
factors at work has been fully established
and the factors concerned can be
identified, measured, and eventually
controlled (WHO, 1985).
Three main factors which influence our
health and well being, as well as our
capacity to work as well as our life
expectancy are:
hereditary factors
external factors
processes of ageing
Work related diseases may be partially
caused by adverse working conditions
They may be aggravated (provoked), accelerated, or
exacerbated (worsted) by workplace exposures,
They may impair working capacity

However, personal characteristics and other
environmental and socio-cultural factors usually play a
role as risk factors in work related diseases, which are
often more common than occupational diseases
Injuries: Heat and Cold
The single formula that describes thermal comfort is
given as:

H = M * R * C E

Where
H = body heat storage load,
M = metabolic heat gain
R = radiant or infrared heat load
C = convection heat load
E = evaporative heat loss.
In occupations in which workers are exposed to excessive
heat, medical evaluation is recommended to identify
individual at increased risk for heat disorders due to pre-
existing medical conditions or use of medications
Exposed workers should be trained to recognise early signs
and symptoms of heat disorders and should be advise of the
importance of proper attire (clothing), nutrition and fluid intake
Symptoms and signs may include intense thirst, weakness,
nausea, fatigue, headache, confusion, and once core (rectal)
temperature exceeds 38
o
C increased pulse rate,
hyperventilation, and moist skin and if core temperature
exceeds 40
o
C, collapse, coma and imminent death
Treatment requires rapid action, immediate replacement of
loss fluids and attempts to cool core temperature (isotonic IV
drips proving to be the most effective)

Injuries: Burns
thermal damage
electric discharges
radiation burns
electromagnetic radiation
chemicals
etc
Natural sunlight
Workers potentially exposed to ultraviolet radiation
Agricultural workers
Brick masons
Ranchers Construction workers
Farmers

Many of the burn injuries that cause a problem in the
work place may not be as obvious as the thermal and
chemical burns. For example, exposure to UV
(ultraviolet) light is a major problem in a number of
industries.
sunlight injuries
Fishermen, Gardeners, Greenkeepers,
Horticultural workers, Landscapers, Lifeguards,
Lumberjacks, Military personnel, Oil field
workers, Open pit miners, Outdoor maintenance
workers, Pipeline workers, Police officers, Postal
carriers, Railroad track workers, Road workers,
Sailors, Ski instructors, Sports professionals,
Surveyors are examples of potential target of
sunlight injuries.
ultraviolet
Arc welding ultraviolet: Welders, Pipeline workers, Pipecutters,
Maintenance workers
Plasma torch ultraviolet: Plasma torch operators
Germicidal ultraviolet: Physicians, Nurses, Laboratory technicians,
Bacteriology laboratory personnel, Barbers, Cosmetologists, Kitchen
workers.
Laser ultraviolet: Laboratory workers
Drying and curing processes: Printers, Lithographers, Painters,
Wood curers, Plastics workers.

Many of the burn injuries that cause a problem in the work
place may not be as obvious as the thermal and chemical
burns. For example, exposure to UV (ultraviolet) light is a
major problem in a number of industries
important medical condition linked
with occupational UV exposure
(i) Photokeratoconjunctivitis or "Welders Flash", symptoms occur
6-12 hours after exposure and include severe pain, photophobia,
and a sensation of a foreign body in the eyes, and tearing;
(ii) Cataracts, strong association between UV exposure and
cataractogenesis exists;
(iii) Eye diseases, retinal damage as well as a number of benign and
cancerous cell conditions;
(iv) Erythema, (reddening of the skin), UV exposure leading to
sunburn is known to most beach bathers. Erythema is most
severe following exposure to wavelengths of 290-320nm and
may be accompanied by oedema, blistering, desquamation,
chills, fever, nausea;
(v) Photosensitivity reactions, especially skin reactions in those
workers of particular medication;
(vi) Premalignant and malignant skin lesions, these usually take a
long time to manifest, earlier changes include accelerated
ageing of skin, loss of elasticity, hyper pigmentation, wrinkles,
etc.
Injuries: Biomedical
Injury at work due to biomechanical factors, such
manual handling (lifting of heavy loads),
inappropriate workplace designs (ergonomics) and
repetitive injuries account for a large proportion of
compensation claims
Manual handing involves the application of human
effort to move equipment, materials, objects, people
or animals. A lot of these activities can be classified
as lifting, but other processes such as, pushing,
pulling, twisting and maneuvering play a role in
carrying any object. It is no use teaching people to
lift things correctly when their job involves, say,
manual handling a 160L drum.
A major factor in manual handling
injuries
Poor working posture this can have a number of
adverse outcomes to the worker.
The work posture and injuries that could be
sustained to tissues, and body parts such as the
back, neck and wrists.

The capacity to perform manual handling varies
considerably not only between individuals but
within any given individual over time. Factors
such as gender, age, and body size can modify
risks of injury
The consequences of poor working posture.
Injuries: Noise and Vibrations
The human ear has a remarkable dynamic
range of roughly 0 to 120 dB, which allows
for the detection of the faintest noise to
painful stimulation
Occupational hearing loss can result from
exposure to excessive noise or prolonged
exposure to high noises
EAR ANATOMY
Occupational hearing loss
partial or total;
unilateral or bilateral; and conductive,
sensorineural, or mixed conductive and
sensorineural in nature

Definition of Injuries
Conductive hearing loss results from dysfunction of
the external or middle ear, which impairs the passage
of sound vibrations to the inner ear. In the workplace,
this can be caused by blunt or penetrating head
injuries, explosions, and thermal injuries, such as slag
burns sustained when a piece of welders slag
penetrates the eardrum
Sensory hearing loss results from usually the
deterioration of the cochlea, usually the due to loss of
hair cells from the organ of Corte. Among the many
common causes of sensory hearing loss are continual
exposure to noise in excess of 85 dB (Australian TWA
standard), blunt head injury, and exposure to ototoxic
or neurotoxic substances.
SYMPTOMS AND EFFECTS OF
INDUSTRIAL DEAFNESS
SYMPTOMS:
a. Speech can be heard but the words aren't clear.
b. Inability to distinguish certain speech sounds life 'f',
's' and 't'; sounds like birds singing or leaves
rustling can't be heard.
c. Some sounds are distorted and 'loudness
recruitment' occurs. This means that sounds which
are hard to hear suddenly become unbearably loud
with only a slight increase in volume.
d. Sufferer may tend to speak too loudly because they
can't hear their own voices clearly.
e. Speech becomes more difficult to hear when e c is
background noise. it can become difficult to hear at
meetings.
EFFECTS:
The most obvious effect of high noise levels
is
Deafness, Dizziness, Loss of balance.
Ringing in ears (Tinnitus).
Headache.
Stress and nervous effects such as
annoyance, irritability.
Reduced night vision.
Loss of sleep

PREVENTION:

an understanding is gained in regard to
the cause of this injury.
There is only one cause, Industrial Noise.
Knowledge of some technical aspects
about noise is the first step towards the
elimination of industrial deafness.
Stewards are urged to study the section of
the manual carefully and to expand their
knowledge by further reading
NOISE CHARACTERISTICS:
INTENSITY AND FREQUENCY
Noise is an unwanted or unpleasant sound
It can interfere with work and safety by
inducing stress and disturbed
concentration
It can cause serious accidents by breaking
down communications; warning signals
cannot be heard when noise levels are
high
INTENSITY
The concentration of sound power on a
surface is called intensity

FREQUENCY
sound power or energy is transmitted through
sound waves
The speed of air particle vibration is called
frequency
Noise frequency is measured by the number of
times air particles move backward and forward,
(i.e., from compression areas to vacuum areas
over a certain period of time
In technical terms frequency is understood and
measured as, cycles per second' hertz or HZ for
short

ABILITY TO HEAR AND INDUSTRIAL
DEAFNESS
OUTER EAR consisting of the portion attached to the
outer surface of the head and the AUDITORY CANAL
MIDDLE EAR consisting of the eardrum and the three
smallest bones in the body, the HAMMER, ANVIL and
STIRRUP
INNER EAR containing the most complex mechanism of
all. This part of the ear consists of the COCHLEA, a
bony structure shaped like a snail. Inside the cochlea
there are tiny hair cells mounted in a membrane which
floats in the liquid. The hair cells in turn are connected
with the brain through the auditory nerve.
THE HEARING PROCESS
Sound waves (vibrations) in the air are transmitted
through the three bones in the middle ear to the
cochlea of the inner ear
During this process, vibration in the air is
converted to mechanical vibration by the
oscillation of the eardrum and the small bones
Finally, the mechanical vibration sets in motion
fluid waves, in the cochlea.
The power carried by these waves activates the
tiny hair cells which in turn send messages to the
brain through the auditory nerve. When these
messages reach the brain, then we can say that
we 'hear'.
HEARING LOSS
Temporary and permanent
TEMPORARY HEARING LOSS involves the
organs of the middle and inner ear and can
occur due to exposure of excessive continuous
noise or impact noise
Impact noise, e.g. metal plates hitting each other
or from forges, hammers and presses, the
eardrum can be damaged. However the
eardrum can eventually repair itself. In the case
of the continuous exposure to noise the hearing
can gradually return
Temporary hearing loss will become permanent
over a period of time.
PERMANENT HEARING LOSS mainly
involves the destruction of hair cells of the
inner ear (in the cochlea Once the hair
cells are destroyed, they cannot be
repaired. The most insidious
characteristics of permanent hearing loss
are:
(a) that there is no warning of the
destruction occurring in the inner ear
(b) the loss of hearing occurs over a long
period of time
THE EXPOSURE TO NOISE LEVELS
The amount of noise workers receive over
a certain-period of time (see Daily Noise
Dose)
The most important point to remember is
that CONTINUOUS EXPOSURE, even to
low levels, (e.g., 70 dB (A) may damage
the ear mechanisms
THE TYPE OF NOISE
continuous and impact or impulse noise
lathe or most of the machine tools will
produce a continuous noise
steel plate dropped on another will
produce impact noise which is more
intense and more dangerous
rivet guns or pneumatic wrenches will emit
impulse noise but in very short intervals
NOISE MEASUREMENTS AND LEGAL
STANDARDS
hazard has to be measured first before action is taken to
eliminate it
MEASUREMENT: THE dB(A) scale is that designed to
measure noise levels and frequencies which can be
hazardous to the human ear.
The dB is a unit of sound (noise) pressure
The (A) next to dB indicates that noise is measured
within a certain range of frequencies (approximately 25
Hz 8000 Hz). At the same time the (A) indicates also
that in noise measurement only some intensities are
being taken into account.
THE CONCEPT OF DAILY NOISE DOSE
used to assess the degree of potential danger to
hearing
the average acoustic power, which the ear
receives during a working day
daily dose is the average of ALL NOISE levels,
which the human ear is coursed to in an 8 hour
period
the instrument used to measure the daily noise
dose is called a DOSIMETER. Its electronic
circuit averages out automatically all the noise
levels received and the results can be read at
anytime and for any portion of the day.
LEGISLATION
legislation regulates reduction of exposure to
noise by ENGINEERING CONTROLS and
PERSONAL PROTECTION
Two important concepts involved in noise
regulation are: NOISE LEVELS and DAILY
NOISE DOSE
In most States legislation will specify that - noise
levels should not exceed the 115 dB(A) mark at
any time and - daily noise dose should not
exceed 85 dB(A) TWA (Time Weighted Average,
i.e., over the eight hour working day as an
average of all measurements).