Vasovagal Syncope at Work: A Narrative Review for an Occupational Management Proposal.

Syncope is a complex clinical manifestation that presents considerable diagnostic difficulties and, consequently, numerous critical issues regarding fitness for work, especially for high-risk tasks. To date, it is impossible to quantify the exact impact of syncope on work and public safety since it is highly improbable to identify loss of consciousness as the fundamental cause of work or driving-related accidents, especially fatal injuries. Working at high-risk jobs such as public transport operators, in high elevations, or with exposure to moving parts, construction equipment, fireworks, or explosives demand attention and total awareness.

SARS-CoV-2 Emergency Management in the ASL 1 Abruzzo Companies, Italy: An Autumn 2022 Cross-Sectional Investigation.

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic still represents a public health emergency that affects workplaces and forces employers to develop technical, organizational and procedural measures safeguarding workers' health, particularly 'fragile' ones. This research aimed to assess employers' adherence to the emergency measures planned by the Italian government to hinder COVID-19 during Autumn 2022.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Autumn 2022, with an 18-item questionnaire derived from the Italian State's governmental indications, sent by email to 51 companies of Marsica and Peligna Valley, L'Aquila, Southern Italy.

Smoking Habits and Workplace Health Promotion among University Students in Southern Italy: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Investigation.

The study aimed to investigate the tobacco smoking prevalence, habits and awareness among a cohort of healthcare students from a university hospital in southern Italy and the associations with socio-demographic determinants. A secondary outcome was to estimate the educational needs to receive information on smoking-related risk factors. Five hundred and forty-nine students completed a self-administered questionnaire (180 male and 369 female, average age 25 yo, ±5.

Returning to Work after the COVID-19 Pandemic Earthquake: A Systematic Review.

Background: The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has disrupted life and work habits and has produced landmark changes worldwide. This systematic review aimed to analyse the management of Return to Work (RTW) by work organisations following the virus spread.

Methods: A selection of 2477 papers, using string research on PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Scopus from January 2020 to October 2021, were analysed.

Tuberculosis Infection Screening in 5468 Italian Healthcare Students: Investigation of a Borderline Zone Value for the QFT-Test.

Healthcare workers are at an increased risk of contracting infection. Tuberculin skin test (TST) and interferon gamma release assay (IGRA) represent the available tests most used for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Different borderline zones have been proposed for defining conversions and reversions to improve the interpretation of the IGRA test results as part of serial testing.

SARS-CoV-2 emergency in the workplace: are companies ready to protect their workers? A cross-sectional survey.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has affected all aspects of everyday life worldwide, including the entire working sector. This study aims to evaluate the response capacity of some Italian companies to the emergency about workers' health and safety. Data were cross-sectional, collected by a specially drafted 19-item checklist sent to 60 enterprises located in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy.

Healthcare Workers and Manual Patient Handling: A Pilot Study for Interdisciplinary Training.

Manual patient handling (MPH) is a major occupational risk in healthcare settings. The aim of this study was to propose an MPH training model involving interdisciplinary aspects. A scheduled training program was performed with 60 healthcare workers (HCWs) from a hospital in Naples, Italy, providing training divided into three sections (occupational health-section one; physical therapy-section two; psychosocial section-section three) and lasting six hours.

HBV vaccination status among healthcare workers: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: The development of a vaccine against hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the improvements in strategy prevention during the last decades.

Aim: To evaluate HBV-related vaccine status in healthcare workers (HCW) exposed to biological risk.

Methods: The serum markers for HBV were collected from HCWs in two tertiary care hospitals in Naples (Italy).

Prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection in healthcare workers at a hospital in Naples, Italy, a low-incidence country.

Background: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at higher risk than the general population of contracting tuberculosis (TB). Moreover, although subjects with latent TB infection (LTBI) are asymptomatic and are not infectious, they may eventually develop active disease. Thus, a fundamental tool of TB control programs for HCWs is the screening and treatment of LTBI.

Prevalence and associated risk factors of latent tuberculosis infection among undergraduate and postgraduate dental students: A retrospective study.

To estimate the prevalence of latent tuberculosis (TB) infection (LTBI) in Italian dental students exposed to the same occupational risks as dental health care personnel and to evaluate potential risk factors, a cross-sectional study was conducted on undergraduate and postgraduate students. After clinical evaluation, students were given a tuberculin skin test; in those found positive, an interferon-γ release assay (IGRA) was conducted. Of the 281 students enrolled, 10 were only TST positive; 8 were TST or/and IGRA positive.

Risk agents related to work and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: An occupational medicine focus.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive muscular paralysis reflecting degeneration of motor neurons. In recent years, in addition to several studies about genetic mechanisms leading to motor neurons damage, various epigenetic theories have been developed, involving the study of the patients' work and lifestyle. The work aims at focusing the role of occupational exposure related to ALS by literature data analysis.

Erratum to: Vaccination against hepatitis b virus: are Italian medical students sufficiently protected after the public vaccination programme?

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1186/s12995-015-0083-4.].

[Professional divers: analysis of critical issues and proposal of a health protocol for work fitness].

Introduction: From many years now, thanks to the development of modern diving techniques, there has been a rapid spread of diving activities everywhere. In fact, divers are ever more numerous both among the Armed Forces and civilians who dive for work, like fishing, biological research and archeology.

Aim: The aim of the study was to propose a health protocol for work fitness of professional divers keeping in mind the peculiar work activity, existing Italian legislation that is almost out of date and the technical and scientific evolution in this occupational field.

Immunotoxicological impact of occupational and environmental nanoparticles exposure: The influence of physical, chemical, and combined characteristics of the particles.

While nanotechnology is growing exponentially, the knowledge of the impact of nanoparticles (NPs) on public health and the environment is limited so far. Current nanomaterial research is focused on the applications of nanotechnology, whereas there is little information on exposure assessment and risk characterization associated with NPs. Therefore, it is essential that the factors influencing NPs associated hazards be studied.

Vaccination against hepatitis b virus: are Italian medical students sufficiently protected after the public vaccination programme?

Background: The development of a vaccine against hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been a major achievement in terms of prevention of HBV infection. For the present study, we analysed the long-term immunogenicity and effectiveness of HBV vaccination among healthcare students with different working seniorities.

Methods: A cross-sectional study of undergraduate and postgraduate students attending the Medical School of the Second University of Naples was conducted between September 2012 and December 2014.

[Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and exposure to metals and other occupational/environmental hazardous materials: state of the art].

In recent years, scientific literature has been giving more and more importance to the study of the occupational/environmental exposure to risk agents related to the onset of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive muscular paralysis reflecting degeneration of motor neurons in the primary motor cortex. Aim of this work is to verify the state of art about the eventual role of occupational/environmental exposure to risk agents. Selected articles, on the basis of keywords, year of publication and topics, are related to occupational and environmental exposure to xenobiotics, and, in particular, to the exposure to heavy metals that could lead to neuronal damage mechanisms involved in ALS onset.

Prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection and associated risk factors among 3,374 healthcare students in Italy.

Introduction: The risk of tuberculosis (TB) in healthcare personnel (HCP) is related to its incidence in the general population. Healthcare students involved in clinical training could be exposed to occupational risks similar to those that HCP face. The prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) among undergraduate healthcare students with different working seniority in Italy was analysed.

Blood lead, manganese, and aluminum levels in a regional Italian cohort of ALS patients: does aluminum have an influence?

Objectives: To study aluminum (Al), manganese (Mn), and lead (Pb) influence on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) development.

Methods: A total of 34 patients (10% of the regional ALS population) and 25 controls of an Italian region were enrolled. Metal concentrations were determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy.

Functional changes in human peripheral neutrophils in workers with different exposure to noxious agents.

Peripheral neutrophils (PMN) are a useful model to study cell activation and to evaluate the multiple stressors' interference with signalling pathways. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of different exposure to noxious agents on PMN activity by chemiluminescence assays. Two groups of office workers were recruited: peripheral whole blood cells and isolated PMNs were analyzed, performing intra- and extra-cellular chemiluminescence evaluation to study compartmental release of radical species.