Vahid Gharibi - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Vahid Gharibi

Research paper thumbnail of Investigation of the compatibility of wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted heat strain (PHS) in assessing the environmental conditions and heat load imposed on individuals: a case study in bakery workers

Introduction: This study was designed with the main purpose of examining the compatibility of the... more Introduction: This study was designed with the main purpose of examining the compatibility of the two indicators of wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted thermal strain (PHS) in assessing the environmental conditions and the heat load imposed on the subjects. Method: In this cross-sectional study, 163 bakers were included in the study. Thermal stress was determined using the WBGT and PHS. At the same time, physiological responses of subjects were recorded, including tympanic temperature, heart rate and mean skin temperature. Finally, the predicted heat strain was evaluated and compared with actual values. Results: Based on the results, the WBGT index is accompanied with an underestimation and PHS with an overestimation, compared to the tympanic temperature. In addition, the WBGT index with the core temperature and the predicted rectal temperature component of the PHS index are the most consistent (kappa value of 0.614 and 0.66, respectively). While the Kappa value is betwe...

Research paper thumbnail of Understanding uptake of prevention and mitigation of COVID-19 at work actions in Iran

Work

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has required organizations to make c... more BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has required organizations to make changes to ways of working to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 in employees. OBJECTIVE: To assess the workplace response to COVID-19 in Iran. METHODS: 255 organizations completed a two-part survey. Part 1 collected data describing the business; Part 2 comprised the International Labor Organization (ILO) 30-item Prevention and Mitigation of COVID-19 at Work Actions Checklist. A four-point Likert scale was used to score each item according to whether preventative measures had been actioned. RESULTS: We found a dichotomy of commitment to managing COVID-19 at work. 42.5%of organizations had fully implemented the ILO recommended preventative actions, and 45.6%workplaces had not implemented any. Large organizations had significantly more preventative actions than SMEs; the Healthcare sector had significantly better COVID-19 mitigation measures in place than Construction projects; and organizations...

Research paper thumbnail of Prediction of metabolic syndrome based on sleep and work-related risk factors using an artificial neural network

BMC Endocrine Disorders

Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a major public health concern due to its high prevalence ... more Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a major public health concern due to its high prevalence and association with heart disease and diabetes. Artificial neural networks (ANN) are emerging as a reliable means of modelling relationships towards understanding complex illness situations such as MetS. Using ANN, this research sought to clarify predictors of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in a working age population. Methods Four hundred sixty-eight employees of an oil refinery in Iran consented to providing anthropometric and biochemical measurements, and survey data pertaining to lifestyle, work-related stressors and sleep variables. National Cholesterol Education Programme Adult Treatment Panel ІІI criteria was used for determining MetS status. The Management Standards Indicator Tool and STOP-BANG questionnaire were used to measure work-related stress and obstructive sleep apnoea respectively. With 17 input variables, multilayer perceptron was used to develop ANNs in 16 rounds of learni...

Research paper thumbnail of Let’s get back to work: Preventive biological cycle management of COVID-19 in the workplace

Work

BACKGROUND: The primary response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been to minimize soci... more BACKGROUND: The primary response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been to minimize social contact through lockdown measures. The closure of non-essential businesses to tackle the spread of the coronavirus has had negative consequences for the global economy, production, and employment. OBJECTIVE: To outline how known occupational health principles can be used for preventative management of the coronavirus in workplaces to support resumption of work. METHODS: A discussion of current knowledge of COVID-19, the cost of the lockdown strategy, and preventative biological cycle management. RESULTS: The evidence-based literature indicates that biological cycle management can control the risk of coronavirus infection, provide a suitable and sufficient exit strategy from lockdown, and support getting employees back to work. Adherence to personal protective equipment standards has been insufficient, indicating a need for workplace investment and education. CONCLUSION: Imposed restri...

Research paper thumbnail of The role of oxidative stress in pulmonary function in bakers exposed to flour dust

International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics

Research paper thumbnail of Coronavirus-Related Opportunities for Promoting Occupational Health and Safety

Research paper thumbnail of Excessive Daytime Sleepiness and Safety Performance: Comparing Proactive and Reactive Approaches

The International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Background: Sleep disorders and excessive daytime sleepiness negatively affect employees' saf... more Background: Sleep disorders and excessive daytime sleepiness negatively affect employees' safety performance. Objective: To investigate the relationship between excessive daytime sleepiness with obstructive sleep apnea and safety performance at an oil construction company in Iran. Methods: 661 employees consented to participate in this study. Excessive daytime sleepiness was measured with the STOP-BANG questionnaire and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). To determine how sleepiness would affect the studied occupational incidents, accidents causing injury and near misses, both reactive data and proactive safety performance indices were measured. Demographic and predictor variables were analyzed with hierarchical multiple linear regression. Results: Employees who met the criteria of excessive daytime sleepiness and obstructive sleep apnea had significantly poorer safety performance indicators. STOP-BANG and ESS were significant predictors of safety compliance (β 0.228 and 0.370, resp...

Research paper thumbnail of The prevalence of metabolic syndrome among Iranian bakers

Research paper thumbnail of Multiple environmental and psychosocial work risk factors and sleep disturbances

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

Research paper thumbnail of The effect of heat stress on hematological parameters and oxidative stress among bakery workers

Toxicology and Industrial Health

Heat stress causes physiological changes, and changes in hematological parameters and hormonal le... more Heat stress causes physiological changes, and changes in hematological parameters and hormonal levels in the human body, known as thermal strain. This study was conducted to determine the effect of exposure to heat stress on hematological parameters and oxidative stress in the bakers of Shahroud City, Iran. A total of 163 bakery workers (exposed group) and 135 office workers (unexposed group) with a minimum of 1-year working experience were selected. Exposure to heat stress was measured using ISO-7243 criteria on the hottest days of the year (late July and August). Wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) was calculated based on indoor environments. Oxidative stress indices including malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in the bakers' and office workers’ serum and hematological parameters were measured. Statistical analysis was done through independent t-test, and multivariate linear regression using SPSS v24. Analysis of hematological parameters s...

Research paper thumbnail of Semi-Quantitative Risk Assessment of Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Health Center Laboratories (Case Study)

Research paper thumbnail of An Epidemiological Study of Accidents in a Construction Industry: A Case-Control Study

Research paper thumbnail of Why construction workers involve in unsafe behaviors? Part A: A qualitative research

Research paper thumbnail of Investigation of the compatibility of wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted heat strain (PHS) in assessing the environmental conditions and heat load imposed on individuals: a case study in bakery workers

Introduction: This study was designed with the main purpose of examining the compatibility of the... more Introduction: This study was designed with the main purpose of examining the compatibility of the two indicators of wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted thermal strain (PHS) in assessing the environmental conditions and the heat load imposed on the subjects. Method: In this cross-sectional study, 163 bakers were included in the study. Thermal stress was determined using the WBGT and PHS. At the same time, physiological responses of subjects were recorded, including tympanic temperature, heart rate and mean skin temperature. Finally, the predicted heat strain was evaluated and compared with actual values. Results: Based on the results, the WBGT index is accompanied with an underestimation and PHS with an overestimation, compared to the tympanic temperature. In addition, the WBGT index with the core temperature and the predicted rectal temperature component of the PHS index are the most consistent (kappa value of 0.614 and 0.66, respectively). While the Kappa value is betwe...

Research paper thumbnail of Understanding uptake of prevention and mitigation of COVID-19 at work actions in Iran

Work

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has required organizations to make c... more BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has required organizations to make changes to ways of working to prevent and mitigate COVID-19 in employees. OBJECTIVE: To assess the workplace response to COVID-19 in Iran. METHODS: 255 organizations completed a two-part survey. Part 1 collected data describing the business; Part 2 comprised the International Labor Organization (ILO) 30-item Prevention and Mitigation of COVID-19 at Work Actions Checklist. A four-point Likert scale was used to score each item according to whether preventative measures had been actioned. RESULTS: We found a dichotomy of commitment to managing COVID-19 at work. 42.5%of organizations had fully implemented the ILO recommended preventative actions, and 45.6%workplaces had not implemented any. Large organizations had significantly more preventative actions than SMEs; the Healthcare sector had significantly better COVID-19 mitigation measures in place than Construction projects; and organizations...

Research paper thumbnail of Prediction of metabolic syndrome based on sleep and work-related risk factors using an artificial neural network

BMC Endocrine Disorders

Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a major public health concern due to its high prevalence ... more Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a major public health concern due to its high prevalence and association with heart disease and diabetes. Artificial neural networks (ANN) are emerging as a reliable means of modelling relationships towards understanding complex illness situations such as MetS. Using ANN, this research sought to clarify predictors of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in a working age population. Methods Four hundred sixty-eight employees of an oil refinery in Iran consented to providing anthropometric and biochemical measurements, and survey data pertaining to lifestyle, work-related stressors and sleep variables. National Cholesterol Education Programme Adult Treatment Panel ІІI criteria was used for determining MetS status. The Management Standards Indicator Tool and STOP-BANG questionnaire were used to measure work-related stress and obstructive sleep apnoea respectively. With 17 input variables, multilayer perceptron was used to develop ANNs in 16 rounds of learni...

Research paper thumbnail of Let’s get back to work: Preventive biological cycle management of COVID-19 in the workplace

Work

BACKGROUND: The primary response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been to minimize soci... more BACKGROUND: The primary response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been to minimize social contact through lockdown measures. The closure of non-essential businesses to tackle the spread of the coronavirus has had negative consequences for the global economy, production, and employment. OBJECTIVE: To outline how known occupational health principles can be used for preventative management of the coronavirus in workplaces to support resumption of work. METHODS: A discussion of current knowledge of COVID-19, the cost of the lockdown strategy, and preventative biological cycle management. RESULTS: The evidence-based literature indicates that biological cycle management can control the risk of coronavirus infection, provide a suitable and sufficient exit strategy from lockdown, and support getting employees back to work. Adherence to personal protective equipment standards has been insufficient, indicating a need for workplace investment and education. CONCLUSION: Imposed restri...

Research paper thumbnail of The role of oxidative stress in pulmonary function in bakers exposed to flour dust

International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics

Research paper thumbnail of Coronavirus-Related Opportunities for Promoting Occupational Health and Safety

Research paper thumbnail of Excessive Daytime Sleepiness and Safety Performance: Comparing Proactive and Reactive Approaches

The International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Background: Sleep disorders and excessive daytime sleepiness negatively affect employees' saf... more Background: Sleep disorders and excessive daytime sleepiness negatively affect employees' safety performance. Objective: To investigate the relationship between excessive daytime sleepiness with obstructive sleep apnea and safety performance at an oil construction company in Iran. Methods: 661 employees consented to participate in this study. Excessive daytime sleepiness was measured with the STOP-BANG questionnaire and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). To determine how sleepiness would affect the studied occupational incidents, accidents causing injury and near misses, both reactive data and proactive safety performance indices were measured. Demographic and predictor variables were analyzed with hierarchical multiple linear regression. Results: Employees who met the criteria of excessive daytime sleepiness and obstructive sleep apnea had significantly poorer safety performance indicators. STOP-BANG and ESS were significant predictors of safety compliance (β 0.228 and 0.370, resp...

Research paper thumbnail of The prevalence of metabolic syndrome among Iranian bakers

Research paper thumbnail of Multiple environmental and psychosocial work risk factors and sleep disturbances

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

Research paper thumbnail of The effect of heat stress on hematological parameters and oxidative stress among bakery workers

Toxicology and Industrial Health

Heat stress causes physiological changes, and changes in hematological parameters and hormonal le... more Heat stress causes physiological changes, and changes in hematological parameters and hormonal levels in the human body, known as thermal strain. This study was conducted to determine the effect of exposure to heat stress on hematological parameters and oxidative stress in the bakers of Shahroud City, Iran. A total of 163 bakery workers (exposed group) and 135 office workers (unexposed group) with a minimum of 1-year working experience were selected. Exposure to heat stress was measured using ISO-7243 criteria on the hottest days of the year (late July and August). Wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) was calculated based on indoor environments. Oxidative stress indices including malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in the bakers' and office workers’ serum and hematological parameters were measured. Statistical analysis was done through independent t-test, and multivariate linear regression using SPSS v24. Analysis of hematological parameters s...

Research paper thumbnail of Semi-Quantitative Risk Assessment of Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Health Center Laboratories (Case Study)

Research paper thumbnail of An Epidemiological Study of Accidents in a Construction Industry: A Case-Control Study

Research paper thumbnail of Why construction workers involve in unsafe behaviors? Part A: A qualitative research