Measures to counteract the negative effects of night work.

Scand J Work Environ Health

Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, 5015 Bergen, Norway.

Published: March 2010

Objectives: Night work is associated with several negative health outcomes as well as accidents and reduced productivity. The aim of this study was to identify factors that may counteract the negative effects of night work.

Methods: We conducted searches for studies of scientifically based countermeasures of the negative effects of night work in PubMed and Thomson Reuters' ISI Web of Knowledge and inspected the reference lists of relevant literature.

Results: We identified studies describing countermeasures such as proper personnel selection, bright light therapy, melatonin administration, naps, exercise, sleepiness detection devices, and the use of stimulants to improve wakefulness and hypnotics to improve daytime sleep.

Conclusions: There is some research supporting countermeasures (eg, bright light, melatonin, naps, use of stimulants, proper work scheduling) as a means to improve adaptation to night work. However, there is little evidence that such countermeasures reduce the long-term health consequences of night work. Future studies should aim at identifying both work and individual factors which are related to differential health outcomes of night work. Better study designs (eg, longitudinal designs and use of standardized outcome measures) are needed in future research.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.2886DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

night work
24
negative effects
12
effects night
12
counteract negative
8
work
8
health outcomes
8
bright light
8
night
7
measures counteract
4
negative
4

Similar Publications

Purpose: Outpatient orthopedic surgery is becoming more common as a method of providing safe and cost-effective medical care. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes between adult patients undergoing outpatient versus inpatient brachial plexus surgery.

Methods: A single institution database was queried for patients with brachial plexus injuries undergoing brachial plexus exploration with or without concomitant reconstructive procedures from 2010 to 2022.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Circadian rhythms, intrinsic 24-h cycles that drive rhythmic changes in behavior and physiology, are important for normal physiology and health. Previous work in adults has identified sex differences in circadian rhythms of melatonin, temperature, and the intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system. However, less is known about sex differences in circadian rhythms at other developmental stages.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The cardiovascular consequences of night work are increasingly well-known. Implementing effective preventive strategies, however, requires further investigation of the effects of exposure duration. This study sought to assess the cumulative dose-effect of night work exposure on the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among current and former night workers in France.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Common examinations for diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are polysomnography (PSG) and home sleep apnea testing (HSAT). However, both PSG and HSAT require that sensors be attached to a subject, which may disturb their sleep and affect the results. Hence, in this study, we aimed to verify a wireless radar framework combined with deep learning techniques to screen for the risk of OSA in home-based environments.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Sleep disturbances among nurses engaged in night duty and their spouses need to be improved to ensure their ability to provide care and perform daily tasks. Therefore, an objective investigation is needed to establish a sleep improvement strategy.

Objective: To investigate the utility of a sleep tracker to assess sleep quality in nurses and spouses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!