Die Wiener Müllabfuhr

Ziel der Studie war es, den Ist-Stand hinsichtlich der Gesundheit bei der Wiener Müllabfuhr festzustellen und mehrere Hypothesen, welche aus der vorliegenden Forschungsliteratur abgeleitet wurden, zu testen. In Zusammenarbeit mit der MA48 wurde im Juni 2009 an alle in Wien tätigen Müllaufleger und Aufseher ein entsprechender Fragebogen ausgegeben, welcher viele Aspekte des Themas Gesundheit, Arbeitssicherheit und Teamarbeit umfasste. Insgesamt nahmen 466 der 892 Wiener Müllaufleger und 34 der rund 50 Aufseher an der Studie teil. Die Aufleger sind alle männlich, großteils 36 bis 45 Jahre alt, haben im Durchschnitt 15,44 Dienstjahre bei der MA48 hinter sich und arbeiten großteils in der Fraktion „Restmüll“ mit einem weiteren Müllaufleger zusammen. Die Aufseher sind auch alle Männer, überwiegend 26 bis 55 Jahre alt und haben zwischen 15 und 30 Dienstjahre bei der MA58 verbracht. Bezüglich der aktuellen Gesundheitssituation der Wiener Müllaufleger konnte Folgendes festgestellt werden: Die Aufleger haben die meisten ärztlichen Diagnosen und die häufigsten und stärksten körperlichen Schmerzen in den Bereichen Nacken, Schulter, oberer Rücken, unterer Rücken und Knie. So hatte beispielsweise nur knapp jeder dritte Aufleger in den letzten12 Monaten keine Schmerzen im unteren Rücken. Es gibt in diesen Regionen auch einen statistisch signifikanten Zusammenhang zwischen der Intensität und der Häufigkeit der Schmerzen. Die Müllaufleger fühlen sich auf ihre Arbeit körperlich gut vorbereitet, manchmal am Ende des Arbeitstages aber völlig erschöpft. Die wenigsten Aufleger fühlen sich am Ende eines Tages oft gestärkt und trainiert. Bezüglich der Übernahme an Gesundheitsverantwortung kann gesagt werden, dass jeder Aufseher und fast alle Aufleger der Aussage „Ich übernehme selbst für meine Gesundheit Verantwortung“ zustimmten. Dies ist ein durchaus positives Ergebnis. Sieht man sich die Bewertung der Gesundheitskonzepte der Aufleger in Selbst- und Fremdbild an, so kann klar gesagt werden, dass die Aufseher sich selbst aktiver, nützlicher und positiver wahrnehmen, als dies die Aufleger tun. Vergleicht man die Personen, die am meisten über Schmerzen berichten, mit denen, die dies am seltensten tun, so sieht man, dass die „Gesunden“ sich weniger auf ihrer Strecke belastet fühlen, ihren Arbeitsalltag weniger mit Stress verbunden sehen und es ihnen leichter fällt, unter Zeitdruck an ihre Körperhaltung zu denken. Weiters sind Personen, die angeben selten Schmerzen zu haben, alles in allem zufriedener mit ihrer Tätigkeit, zeigen mehr Commitment mit der MA48 und haben weniger Angst ihren Arbeitsplatz oder ihre Originalstrecke bei Krankheit zu verlieren. Zur Beeinflussung des Faktors „Gesundheitswissen und Gesundheitsverantwortung“ kann gesagt werden, dass hier weder das Alter noch das Dienstalter noch die Qualifikation als Sicherheitsvertrauensperson noch die Fraktion eine Rolle spielen. Bei der Überprüfung, welche Faktoren einen Einfluss auf die Schmerzhäufigkeit haben, kann zusammenfassend festgestellt werden, dass das Alter und die abgeleisteten Dienstjahre wichtig sind, jedoch nicht die Fraktion, in der eine Person arbeitet. Weiters gibt es keinen Zusammenhang mit der Selbsteinschätzung in den Bereichen „Gesundheitswissen und Gesundheitsverantwortung“ und der Häufigkeit, mit der über Schmerzen berichtet wird. Untersucht wurde auch der vermutete „Healthy worker (survivor)“-Effekt bei der Wiener Müllabfuhr. Es konnte jedoch kein entsprechender Effekt gefunden werden. Die Korrelation zwischen Dienstalter und Schmerzhäufigkeit ist grundsätzlich sogar schwach, aber signifikant positiv. Auch fühlen sich Personen mit vielen Dienstjahren eher körperlich schlechter auf ihre Arbeit vorbereitet. Insgesamt kann das Bild einer Population gezeichnet werden, welche seit vielen Jahren körperliche Schwerstarbeit verrichtet, über entsprechende Schmerzen klagt und viel Selbstverantwortung für ihre Gesundheit übernimmt.The intention of the study was to assess the health of the Viennese waste collection and to test serveral hypotheses, which have been educed from the present psychological literature. In collaboration with the MA 48 (the Viennese department for waste collection) a questionnaire has been developed and passed out to all waste collectors in Vienna and their direct supervisors. In this questionnaire many aspects of the topics health, occupational safety and teamwork were asked. Altogether 466 of the 892 Viennese waste collectors and 34 of their about 50 supervisors filled out the questionnaire. The waste collectors are all male, mainly 36 to 45 years old, have been employed 15,44 years for the MA 48 in average and they work mainly in the fraction “General waste” together with one colleague. The supervisors are all male too, predominantly 26 to 55 years old and have been working between 15 and 30 years for the MA 48. Concerning the actual health of the Viennese waste collectors, there can be said: The waste collectors have most of their medical diagnoses as well as the most frequently and strongest pains in areas around neck, shoulders, upper back, lower back and knees. Only every third waste collector had no pain in the lower back area in the last 12 months. For these mentioned regions there is also a statistical significant correlation between the intensity and the frequency of pain. The waste workers have the feeling, that they are physically well prepared for their work, but sometimes totally exhausted at the end of their workday. Just a small part of the group is feeling invigorated and well trained then. Concerning the responsibility for health, every supervisor and nearly every waste collector agrees, that he himself is in charge for his own health. That’s a very positive finding. If you look at the self-image of the supervisors concerning health concepts and how the waste collectors see them, so it can be said that the supervisors see themselves as more active, more beneficial and more positive then their workers do. If you compare people, who report on health problems the most to those who are doing this least, you will see, that the “healthy people” are feeling less burdened on their route, they see their workday less connected to distress and it’s easier for them to think about their posture when they are pressed for time. Furthermore people, who report just rare pain, are more content with their work in general, they feel more commited to the MA48 and have less fear of losing their job or their original route in times of sickness. Regarding the possible influencing variables on the factor „health knowledge, health responsibility“ there can be said that neither age nor length of service nor the qualification as a “safety delegate” nor the fraction is important. After testing which factors have an influence on the frequency of physical pain, it is possible to say, that age and length of service at the Viennese waste collection are important, the Fraction in which the person works is not. Moreover there is no correlation between the self-rating in “health knowledge and health responsibility” and the frequency of pain. Furthermore the suspected „healthy worker (survivor)”-effect at the Viennese waste collection was explored. But such an effect could not been found. The correlation between length of service and frequency of pain is rather weak, but significant positive. People who work for many years in this job do also feel physically worse prepared for their work. Overall there is the picture of a population which is doing physically heavy labour for a long time, that has correspondent pangs and which is taking responsibility for their health

Treatment with 4-aminopyridine improves upper limb tremor of a patient with multiple sclerosis: a video case report

Here we report the case of a 44-year old patient with a progressive MS whose upper limb tremor was markedly reduced under treatment with 4-aminopyridine, as documented in a Tremor Activities of Daily Living questionnaire and in the 9-Hole Peg test. Hand accelerations decreased in the left hand from 10.9 m/sec2 to 2.2 m/sec2 and in the right hand from 4.2 m/sec2 to 0.9 m/sec(2). This case report indicates for the first time that 4-aminopyridine might be effective in the symptomatic treatment of tremor entities in patients with MS. The finding calls for further prospective studies to determine the usefulness of 4-aminopyridine or its sustained-release form dalfampridine in treating patients with tremor and MS

Treatment with 4-aminopyridine improves upper limb tremor of a patient with multiple sclerosis: a video case report

Here we report the case of a 44-year old patient with a progressive MS whose upper limb tremor was markedly reduced under treatment with 4-aminopyridine, as documented in a Tremor Activities of Daily Living questionnaire and in the 9-Hole Peg test. Hand accelerations decreased in the left hand from 10.9 m/sec2 to 2.2 m/sec2 and in the right hand from 4.2 m/sec2 to 0.9 m/sec(2). This case report indicates for the first time that 4-aminopyridine might be effective in the symptomatic treatment of tremor entities in patients with MS. The finding calls for further prospective studies to determine the usefulness of 4-aminopyridine or its sustained-release form dalfampridine in treating patients with tremor and MS

Pathology of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome in multiple sclerosis with natalizumab-associated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy

Natalizumab is an approved medication for highly active multiple sclerosis (MS). Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) may occur as a severe side effect of this drug. Here, we describe pathological and radiological characteristics of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS), which occurs in natalizumab-associated PML after the cessation of therapy, and we differentiate it from ongoing PML. Brain biopsy tissue and MRI scans from five MS patients with natalizumab-associated PML were analyzed and their histology compared with non-MS PML. Histology showed an extensive CD8-dominated T cell infiltrate and numerous macrophages within lesions, and in nondemyelinated white and grey matter, in four out of five cases. Few or no virally infected cells were found. This was indicative of IRIS as known from HIV patients with PML. Outstandingly high numbers of plasma cells were present as compared to non-MS PML and typical MS lesions. MRI was compatible with IRIS, revealing enlarging lesions with a band-like or speckled contrast enhancement either at the lesion edge or within lesions. Only the fifth patient showed typical PML pathology, with low inflammation and high numbers of virally infected cells. This patient showed a similar interval between drug withdrawal and biopsy (3.5 months) to the rest of the cohort (range 2.5–4 months). MRI could not differentiate between PML-associated IRIS and ongoing PML. We describe in detail the histopathology of IRIS in natalizumab-associated PML. PML–IRIS, ongoing PML infection, and MS exacerbation may be impossible to discern clinically alone. MRI may provide some clues for distinguishing different pathologies that can be differentiated histologically. In our individual cases, biopsy helped to clarify diagnoses in natalizumab-associated PML

Antifungal triazoles affect key non-target metabolic pathways in Solanum lycopersicum L. plants

Several 1,2,4-triazoles are widely used as systemic fungicides in agriculture because they inhibit fungal 14ɑ-demethylase. However, they can also act on many non-target plant enzymes, thereby affecting phytohormonal balance, free amino acid content, and adaptation to stress. In this study, tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum L. var. ‘Cherrola‘) were exposed to penconazole, tebuconazole, or their combination, either by foliar spraying or soil drenching, every week, as an ecotoxicological model. All triazole-exposed plants showed a higher content (1.7–8.8 ×) of total free amino acids than the control, especially free glutamine and asparagine were increased most likely in relation to the increase in active cytokinin metabolites 15 days after the first application. Conversely, the Trp content decreased in comparison with control (0.2–0.7 ×), suggesting depletion by auxin biosynthesis. Both triazole application methods slightly affected the antioxidant system (antioxidant enzyme activity, antioxidant capacity, and phenolic content) in tomato leaves. These results indicated that the tomato plants adapted to triazoles over time. Therefore, increasing the abscisic and chlorogenic acid content in triazole-exposed plants may promote resistance to abiotic stress

Triazoles as a Potential Threat to the Nutritional Quality of Tomato Fruits

Triazole fungicides can threaten plants as abiotic stressors but can also positively affect plant defense by inducing priming. Thus, plant yield is also both protected and endangered by triazoles that may influence several metabolic pathways during maturation processes, such as the biosynthesis of saccharides or secondary metabolites. Here, Solanum lycopersicum L. plants were exposed to foliar and soil applications of penconazole, tebuconazole, or their combination, and their resulting effect on tomato fruits was followed. The exposure to the equimolar mixture of both triazoles influenced the representation of free proteinogenic amino acids, especially Gln, Glu, Gly, Ile, Lys, Ser and Pro, saccharide content, and led to a significant increase in the contents of total phenolics and flavonoids as well as positive stimulation of the non-enzymatic antioxidant system. Among the identified secondary metabolites, the most abundant was naringenin, followed by chlorogenic acid in tomato peel. In turn, all triazole-treated groups showed a significantly lower content of rosmarinic acid in comparison with the control. Foliar application of penconazole affected the fruit more than other single triazole applications, showing a significant decrease in antioxidant capacity, the total content of secondary metabolites, and the activities of total membrane-bound peroxidases and ascorbate peroxidase