Associations between heat exposure, vigilance, and balance performance in summer tree fruit harvesters

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Appl Ergon
• Personal Author:
  Spector, June T. ; Krenz, Jennifer ; Calkins, Miriam ; Ryan, Dawn ; Carmona, Jose ; Pan, Mengjie ; Zemke, Anna ; Sampson, Paul D.
• Description:
  Background
  
  We sought to evaluate potential mediators of the relationship between heat exposure and traumatic injuries in outdoor agricultural workers.
  
  Methods
  
  Linear mixed models were used to estimate associations between maximum work-shift Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGTmax) and post-shift vigilance (reaction time) and postural sway (total path length) in a cross-sectional sample of 46 Washington State tree fruit harvesters in August–September 2015.
  
  Results
  
  The mean (SD) WBGTmax was 27.4 (3.2)°C in August and 21.2 (2.0)°C in September. The mean pre-work-shift participant urine specific gravity indicated minimal dehydration. Twenty-four percent of participants exhibited possible excessive sleepiness. There was no association between WBGTmax and post-shift reaction time or total path length.
  
  Conclusions
  
  Heat exposure was not associated with impaired vigilance or balance in this study, in which the overall mean (SD) WBGTmax was 25.9 (4.2)°C. However, the study identified opportunities to ensure adequate pre-work-shift hydration and to optimize sleep and work-shift timing in order to reduce occupational injury and heat-related illness risk.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Adult Agriculture Article Cross-Sectional Studies Dehydration Female Fruit Heat Stress Disorders Hot Temperature Humans Linear Models Male Middle Aged Occupational Exposure Occupational Injuries Postural Balance Reaction Time Seasons Sleep Trees Work Schedule Tolerance

  More +
• Source:
  Appl Ergon. 67:1-8
• Pubmed ID:
  29122180
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC5912891
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  K01 OH010672/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States ; T42 OH008433/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States
• Place as Subject:
  Washington
• Volume:
  67
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:d874b7be5d2e1a451443e391a0aa2b56c3df91e66cd83f85ba8d3f97bf0d89a0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/53627/cdc_53627_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 107.25 KB ]