Journal of Occupational Health
Online ISSN : 1348-9585
Print ISSN : 1341-9145
ISSN-L : 1341-9145
Volume 58, Issue 3
Displaying 1-11 of 11 articles from this issue
Originals
  • Hisashi Eguchi, Akihito Shimazu, Arnold B. Bakker, Maria Tims, Kimika ...
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 231-240
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: The aim of this study was to validate the Japanese version of the job crafting scale (JCS-J). JCS measures four independent job crafting dimensions, namely increasing structural job resources, decreasing hindering job demands, increasing social job resources, and increasing challenging job demands. Methods: The translated and back-translated JCS-J questionnaires were administered online to 972 employees of a Japanese manufacturing company. The data were then divided into independent explorative and confirmative samples. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to evaluate the factorial validity of JCS-J. The relationship with potential consequences of job crafting (e.g., job demands, job resources, and psychological well-being) was investigated to evaluate construct validity. Internal consistency was examined to evaluate the reliability of the four JCSs. Results: An exploratory factor analysis extracted a five-factor solution. Decreasing hindering job demands was further split into two separate dimensions supporting a five- rather than four-factor structure. A series of confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the modified five-factor model that allows covariance between items fits the data best. Construct validity was generally supported by the expected correlations of each job crafting dimension with each corresponding job resource (+), job demand (+), and psychological well-being (+). Cronbach's α coefficient was sufficient for each of the four dimensions of job crafting (α ranged between 0.76 and 0.90). Conclusions: This study confirmed that JCS-J is an adequate measure of job crafting that can be used in the Japanese context.
  • Toru Ishidao, Yukiko Fueta, Susumu Ueno, Yasuhiro Yoshida, Hajime Hori
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 241-246
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objective: Inhaled 1-bromopropane decomposes easily and releases bromine ion. However, the kinetics and transfer of bromine ion into the next generation have not been clarified. In this work, the kinetics of bromine ion transfer to the next generation was investigated by using cross-fostering analysis and a one-compartment model. Methods: Pregnant Wistar rats were exposed to 700 ppm of 1-bromopropane vapor for 6 h per day during gestation days (GDs) 1-20. After birth, cross-fostering was performed between mother exposure groups and mother control groups, and the pups were subdivided into the following four groups: exposure group, postnatal exposure group, gestation exposure group, and control group. Bromine ion concentrations in the brain were measured temporally. Results: Bromine ion concentrations in mother rats were lower than those in virgin rats, and the concentrations in fetuses were higher than those in mothers on GD20. In the postnatal period, the concentrations in the gestation exposure group decreased with time, and the biological half-life was 3.1 days. Conversely, bromine ion concentration in the postnatal exposure group increased until postnatal day 4 and then decreased. This tendency was also observed in the exposure group. A one-compartment model was applied to analyze the behavior of bromine ion concentration in the brain. By taking into account the increase of body weight and change in the bromine ion uptake rate in pups, the bromine ion concentrations in the brains of the rats could be estimated with acceptable precision.
  • Mo-Yeol Kang, Young-Joong Kang, Woncheol Lee, Jin-Ha Yoon
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 247-254
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: Our prospective study aimed to elucidate the effect of long-term experience of nonstandard employment status on the incidence of depression in elderly population using the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA) study. Methods: This study used the first- to fourth-wave cohorts of KLoSA. After the exclusion of the unemployed and participants who experienced a change in employment status during the follow-up periods, we analyzed a total of 1,817 participants. Employment contracts were assessed by self-reported questions:standard or nonstandard employment. The short form of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) served as the outcome measure. Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models to evaluate the association between standard/nonstandard employees and development of depression. Results: The mean age of the participants was 53.90 (±7.21) years. We observed that nonstandard employment significantly increased the risk of depression. Compared with standard employees, nonstandard employees had a 1.5-fold elevated risk for depression after adjusting for age, gender, CES-D score at baseline, household income, occupation category, current marital status, number of living siblings, perceived health status, and chronic diseases [HR=1.461, 95% CI= (1.184, 1.805) ]. Moreover, regardless of other individual characteristics, the elevated risk of depression was observed among all kinds of nonstandard workers, such as temporary and day workers, full-time and part-time workers, and directly employed and dispatched labor. Conclusions: The 6-year follow-up study revealed that long-term experience of nonstandard employment status increased the risk of depression in elderly population in Korea.
  • Désirée Füllemann, Rebecca Brauchli, Gregor J. Jenny, Georg F. Bauer
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 255-268
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: This study adds a multilevel perspective to the well-researched individual-level relationship between job resources and work engagement. In addition, we explored whether individual job resources cluster within work groups because of a shared psychosocial environment and investigated whether a resource-rich psychosocial work group environment is beneficial for employee engagement over and above the beneficial effect of individual job resources and independent of their variability within groups. Methods: Data of 1,219 employees nested in 103 work groups were obtained from a baseline employee survey of a large stress management intervention project implemented in six medium and large-sized organizations in diverse sectors. A variety of important job resources were assessed and grouped to an overall job resource factor with three subfactors (manager behavior, peer behavior, and task-related resources). Data were analyzed using multilevel random coefficient modeling. Results: The results indicated that job resources cluster within work groups and can be aggregated to a group-level job resources construct. However, a resource-rich environment, indicated by high group-level job resources, did not additionally benefit employee work engagement but on the contrary, was negatively related to it. Conclusions: On the basis of this unexpected result, replication studies are encouraged and suggestions for future studies on possible underlying within-group processes are discussed. The study supports the presumed value of integrating work group as a relevant psychosocial environment into the motivational process and indicates a need to further investigate emergent processes involved in aggregation procedures across levels.
  • Tomohiro Ishimaru, Koji Wada, Sara Arphorn, Derek R. Smith
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 269-275
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Background: Healthcare workers infected with Hepatitis B (HBV) or Hepatitis C virus (HCV) may undertake patient care activities if provider-to-patient transmission risks have been assessed in terms of viral load and clinical procedures. The present study investigated potential barriers to the acceptance of colleagues infected with HBV/HCV in healthcare settings after appropriate risk assessment. Methods: We conducted an anonymous, internet-based survey of Japanese nurses. Multivariate logistic analysis was used to assess factors associated with willingness to accept colleagues infected with HBV/HCV after risk assessment. Results: In total, 992 nurses responded to the survey, with 16% indicating that colleagues infected with HBV/HCV should not have patient contact after risk assessment. Willingness to accept HBV/HCV-infected colleagues was negatively associated with attitudes regarding the avoidance of contact with HBV/HCV-infected colleagues (OR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.28-0.85). Previous professional contact with HBV/HCV patients (OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.36-2.12), experience of accidental injection from or personal exposure to HBV/HCV patients (OR: 2.00; 95% CI: 1.42-2.61), knowledge of HBV/HCV (OR: 2.00; 95% CI: 1.52-2.49), and female sex (OR: 1.60; 95% CI: 1.17-2.09) were positively associated with a willingness to accept HBV/HCV-infected colleagues. Conclusions: This study suggests that attitudes regarding the avoidance of contact with HBV/HCV-infected colleagues may be barriers to accepting these colleagues even after risk assessment has been performed. To protect the employment of nurses infected with HBV/HCV, employers should provide comprehensive education for nurses to reduce stigma and improve understanding about the management of staff infected with infectious diseases, such as HBV or HCV.
  • Masako Nagata, Koji Mori, Asako Ishikawa, Tomohisa Nagata
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 276-288
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: This study aimed to identify the practical abilities required by nonspecialist occupational physicians and specify the priorities for training programs. Methods: A practical abilities list was developed through a focus group meeting of specialists. We created a survey questionnaire and asked three groups, namely, occupational physicians, occupational health nurses, and health officers, to rate the importance of each practical ability. Results: The mean scores for all 45 items were greater than 4, i.e., in the middle of the 7-point Likert scale, for all the three groups. The occupational physicians' responses had a correlation with the other groups' responses. However, there were differences with regard to some practical abilities between the three groups. Five practical abilities from the top quartile were marked "A" by all the three groups: "Submit opinions on fitness for duty and work accommodation on the basis of data from health examination," "Respect employee privacy," "Submit opinion on fitness for duty and work accommodation on the basis of data from face-to-face interviews with employees," "Submit opinions on fitness for duty and work accommodation on the basis of data from health surveillance," and "Implement face-to-face interviews for employees who have worked overtime and evaluate the subjects' conditions including mental and physical health status, degree of accumulated fatigue, and depression." Conclusions: This study resulted in a rank-ordered list of 45 practical abilities that are required by nonspecialist occupational physicians. This result may be useful to review and redesign the existing training program for nonspecialist occupational physicians.
  • Tomasz Wolny, Edward Saulicz, Paweł Linek, Andrzej Myśliwiec
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 289-296
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate two-point discrimination (2PD) sense and kinesthetic sense dysfunctions in carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) patients compared with a healthy group. Methods: The 2PD sense, muscle force, and kinesthetic differentiation (KD) of strength; the range of motion in radiocarpal articulation; and KD of motion were assessed. Results: The 2PD sense assessment showed significantly higher values in all the examined fingers in the CTS group than in those in the healthy group (p<0.01). There was a significant difference in the percentage value of error in KD of pincer and cylindrical grip (p<0.01) as well as in KD of flexion and extension movement in the radiocarpal articulation (p<0.01) between the studied groups. Conclusions: There are significant differences in the 2PD sense and KD of strength and movement between CTS patients compared with healthy individuals.
  • Hakan Baydur, Alp Ergör, Yücel Demiral, Elif Akalın
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 297-309
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objective: To evaluate the participatory ergonomic method on the development of upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders and disability in office employees. Methods: This study is a randomized controlled intervention study. It comprised 116 office workers using computers. Those in the intervention group were taught office ergonomics and the risk assessment method. Cox proportional hazards model and generalized estimating equations (GEEs) were used. Results: In the 10-month postintervention follow-up, the possibility of developing symptoms was 50.9%. According to multivariate analysis results, the possibility of developing symptoms on the right side of the neck and in the right wrist and hand was significantly less in the intervention group than in the control group (p<0.05). Neck disability/symptom scores over time were significantly lower in the intervention group compared with the control group (p<0.05). Conclusion: The participatory ergonomic intervention decreases the possibility of musculoskeletal complaints and disability/symptom level in office workers.
Brief Reports
  • Gianna Moscato, Gianni Pala, Ilenia Folletti, Andrea Siracusa, Santiag ...
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 310-313
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Background: The strong interactions between asthma and rhinitis, and the influence of rhinitis in the severity and/or control of asthma, have clearly been demonstrated. Nevertheless, no specific study has been conducted in the occupational setting. Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the severity of occupational asthma and rhinitis and evaluate whether rhinitis is a predictor for increased asthma severity. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical charts of 72 patients who received a diagnosis of allergic occupational asthma, with or without associated occupational rhinitis. Results: Our findings suggested that persistent asthma tended to be more common in subjects with associated occupational asthma and rhinitis, and occupational asthma severity was associated with occupational rhinitis severity. Moderate-severe persistent occupational rhinitis is a risk factor for persistent occupational asthma. Conclusions: We demonstrated, for the first time in the occupational setting, a significant association between occupational rhinitis and asthma severity.
  • Teruomi Tsukahara, Hiroyuki Miyauchi, Daisuke Kuwada, Tomoko Kikuchi, ...
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 314-319
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: We aimed to assess the exposure of offset printing workers to hazardous substances in the rinsing processes of small-sized companies using a control banding method. Methods: We obtained half-year amounts of hazardous substances purchased through a questionnaire survey and the hazardous information from the safety data sheets (SDSs) and related literature. Results: The amount of petroleum kerosine and carbon hydride markedly increased in 2013 compared with that in 2010. In contrast, the amount of dichloromethane (DCM) decreased in 2013, and 1,2-dichloropropane (DCP) was not used in either 2010 or 2013. Mineral oil and xylene were allocated to Hazard Group D and judged to require Control Approach 3. In addition to DCM with Global Harmonization System's carcinogenic category 1, mildly treated mineral oil and solvent naphtha, allocated into Hazard Group E, are carcinogenic to humans and were judged to require Control Approach 4. There are two limitations of the control banding assessment: first, only limited and scarce hazard information could be obtained from SDSs, and second, safe-sided judgment for control technology for industrial hygiene. Conclusion: Small-sized enterprises are encouraged to implement control banding assessment for hazardous substances and to access expert advice available from Regional Industrial Health Centers. Easy access to appropriate expert advice is important to compensate for the limited and scarce hazard information and safe-sided judgment for control technology for Control Approaches 3 and 4.
Case Study
  • Toyoaki Sawano, Masaharu Tsubokura, Claire Leppold, Akihiko Ozaki, Sho ...
    2016 Volume 58 Issue 3 Pages 320-322
    Published: May 20, 2016
    Released on J-STAGE: June 16, 2016
    Advance online publication: April 22, 2016
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    Objectives: Patients with underlying conditions are at a higher risk of developing sepsis, a systematic response to infection, which has a high mortality rate. After the March 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident, there has been an influx of migrant decontamination workers; however, little is known about their health status.Case: A Japanese 55-year-old male decontamination worker, who had several underlying diseases, was transferred to our hospital in cardiopulmonary arrest. He had a history of diabetes mellitus and hypertension and a past history of tuberculosis. Control of underlying conditions was poor, with HbA1c of 13.8% at presentation. He was diagnosed with pneumonia-induced bacteremia and sepsis due to Klebsiella pneumoniae. Although spontaneous circulation returned in emergency room, he died a day after admission.Conclusion: The poor control of underlying diseases seen in this patient could have been influenced by his recent job transfer and engagement in decontamination work and additionally related to his socioeconomic status (SES). This case highlights the need for further research to elucidate the underlying diseases, working conditions, and SES of this population.
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