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Biomedical subjects

O Svane

Publications and source records attributed to O Svane.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Risk of fatal industrial accidents and death from other external causes among asphalt workers.

The hypothesis that asphalt workers are at increased risk of mortality from industrial accidents and other external causes was tested. Mortality rates for external and violent causes of death in a cohort of asphalt industry employees from seven European countries and Israel were compared to that of the general population. There was no evidence that mortality from external causes was increased among long term employees in asphalt application and mixing. There was an increased risk for mortality due to external causes among short term workers. However, none of the fatal accidents among short term workers appear to have occurred during employment in the studied asphalt companies. Overall, no evidence was found supporting the hypothesis that asphalt workers are at increased risk of fatal industrial or road accidents. Mortality from other external causes did not increase in this population as a whole, but increased risks among short term workers deserve further attention.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1993

On the substitution for carcinogens in the working environment.

The ultimate solution in prevention of occupational cancer risks would be to remove carcinogens from the working environment. Elimination of carcinogenic substances can be achieved by replacement of the carcinogen with non-carcinogen(s) having the same functionality, or by using a different process that produces adequate results without the use of carcinogenic agents. This paper presents selected methods and tools, which have been used for substitution purposes in practice. These are: 1. a strategy for substitution, 2. a tool for creating ideas on how to substitute, 3. a software package, SUBTEC, for solving some technical and industrial hygiene problems, and 4. a proposal for a strategy to deal with organizational and psychological barriers encountered when changes are to be introduced.

Carcinogens, Environmental↗
PubMed1991

Biological monitoring and medical screening at the workplace in the EC countries.

Health surveillance in the work environment involves continuous biological monitoring and medical screening, with the purpose of primary and secondary prophylaxis of work-related diseases. Is this screening activity governed by a rationale based on knowledge of dangerous exposure and the availability of valid tests? In the USA, where health surveillance programmes are used extensively, a study has found screening activity to be associated more with plant size than which relevant exposure. This study was done to elucidate the character and extent of use of health surveillance in the work environment in the EC countries with the aid of a questionnaire survey. The chief medical officers of the National Labour Inspectorates supplied information on substances covered by health surveillance programme in the EC member states, together with the legislative status and numbers of exposed workers. Belgium, France, Italy and the former Federal Republic of Germany made extensive use of health surveillance programmes in cases of known exposure to metals, organic solvents, carcinogenic and genotoxic substances, mineral dust, ionizing radiation, and biological agents. Denmark and Holland ran national programmes only for substances covered by EC directives, while England, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal comprised an intermediate user group. The result suggest that the use of health surveillance is related more to the national choice of standard regulatory instruments than to relevant exposure.

Environmental Monitoring↗
PubMed1991

Gender-specific reproductive outcome and exposure to high-frequency electromagnetic radiation among physiotherapists.

The aim of this case-referent study was to investigate reproductive hazards other than congenital malformations after exposure to high-frequency electromagnetic radiation. Cases and referents were sampled from a cohort of pregnancies of members of the Union of Danish Physiotherapists through linkage of the union file with national medical registers. Case groups were spontaneous abortions and children with low birth-weight prematurity, and stillbirth/death within one year. Exposure to high-frequency electromagnetic radiation before and during pregnancy was assessed through telephone interviews. As referents to the 270 cases, 316 pregnancies were randomly sampled. A total of 8.4% did not participate. Only 23.5% of the children born by the highly exposed mothers were boys. This value is a statistically significantly altered gender ratio showing a dose-response pattern. High-frequency electromagnetic radiation was furthermore associated with low birthweight, but only for male newborns. The other outcomes were not statistically significantly associated with exposure to high-frequency electromagnetic radiation.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

[Health screening in the workplace. Benefits and principles].

This article describes the prophylactic programmes for health surveillance which exist in the occupational environment in Denmark. Compared with other industrialised countries, Denmark has only few established surveillance programmes. Nevertheless, these investigations exist, particularly in the form of non-specific general clinical health investigations at local workplaces, in certain branch agreements and in certain types of work. In addition, the article provides a review of the literature concerning health and health-economic effects of supervision of health. It is concluded that with the existing knowledge, pre-employment examinations and periodic health examinations as routine examinations without and clearly defined object must be regarded as having limited prophylactic value and that examinations of this nature can scarcely give the worker any health benefit or give the employer any economic profit. On the other hand, programmes of this nature may give the employees a false sense of security and contribute towards interpreting of justifiable levels of exposure, on an incorrect basis. Biological monitoring and occupational medical screening include, as a rule, more well directed programmes which will probably be employed to a greater extent in the coming years. Finally, a set of American directives for criteria of utilization, particularly for screening in occupational medicine are discussed. It is maintained here, among other things, the necessity of an integrated analysis of biological monitoring, screening and control of exposure so that health surveillance can be of benefit for all the employees at a workplace and not only the individual worker.

Denmark↗
PubMed1990

Reporting of occupational cancer in Denmark.

Many patients with occupational diseases fail to obtain compensation because their disease is not recognized as occupational and reported to the authorities. The present study examined the reporting of pleural mesotheliomas and sinonasal adenocarcinomas--cancers with well-known associations with occupational exposures to asbestos and wood dust--in Denmark in 1983-1987. The estimated underreporting was around 50%. Examination of the medical records of patients who had not been reported in 1986-1987 revealed that in most cases the medical records did not contain sufficiently detailed information about occupational exposures. It was recommended that a formal screening interview be carried out whenever a diagnosis is made of a potential occupational cancer. Medical associations may play a major role by issuing guidelines addressing occupational diseases within the fields of their expertise.

Adenocarcinoma↗