INTRODUCTION: Electric arc welding and oxy-fuel gas welding are the commonest welding technologies used in small scale industries in Nigeria. Electric arc welders are exposed to serious health hazards like exposure to welding smoke. Health effects of such exposure include metal fume fever, and increased risk of chronic diseases and cancers. Exposure to welding smoke can be minimized by use of P...

BACKGROUND Welding-associated air pollutants negatively affect the health of exposed workers; however, their molecular mechanisms in causing disease remain largely unclear. Few studies have systematically investigated the systemic toxic effects of welding fumes on humans. OBJECTIVES To explore the effects of welding fumes on the plasma metabolome, and to identify biomarkers for risk assessmen...

Welding is used in a wide range of heavy and light industry, construction and maintenance, including vehicle construction. Workers using welding processes are exposed to electromagnetic fields (EMF). The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has published guidelines on limits of the exposure to static magnetic fields and on guidelines limiting the exposure to ti...

C onfined spaces exist in nearly every industry, and many workers come into contact with at least one during the course of their work. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, about 90 deaths involving confined spaces occur every year across a wide range of industries. Unfortunately, two-thirds of those deaths are workers killed while trying to rescue someone else from a ...

OBJECTIVES Most workers in auto part factories in Thailand are usually exposed to excessive noise in their workplace. This study aimed to assess the level of occupational noise-induced hearing loss and investigate risk factors causing hearing loss in auto part factory workers in the welding units in Thailand. METHODS This was a cross-sectional study. One hundred eighty subjects were recruited...

Several cases of parkinsonism were found in a ferromanganese smelter after the ventilation system had broken down and had not been repaired for eight months in 1985. To determine the aetiology and prevalence of parkinsonism, 132 workers were submitted to thorough medical examination and estimated air concentrations of carbon monoxide and manganese at different worksites. Only six of eight worke...

BACKGROUND Numerous cross-sectional studies have reported reduced lung function among welders but limitations of exposure assessment and design preclude causal inference. The aim of this study was to investigate if long-term exposure to welding fume particulates accelerates the age-related decline in lung function. METHODS Lung function was measured by spirometry in 1987 and 2004 among 68 ste...

This article describes work performed on the assessment of the levels of airborne ultrafine particles emitted in two welding processes metal-active gas (MAG) of carbon steel and friction-stir welding (FSW) of aluminium in terms of deposited area in alveolar tract of the lung using a nanoparticle surface area monitor analyser. The obtained results showed the dependence from process parameters on...

We report an outbreak of four confirmed cases of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in individuals occupationally exposed to welding fumes, at a Belfast shipyard (Northern Ireland). All cases were hospitalised. A high-risk sub-group of 679 workers has been targeted for antibiotic prophylaxis and pneumococcal vaccination. Physicians and public health institutions outside Northern Ireland should...