OBJECTIVES This article describes the characteristics of shift workers and compares stress factors and health behaviours of shift and regular daytime workers. Based on an analysis of people followed over four years, associations between the incidence of chronic conditions and changes in psychological distress levels are explored in relation to working shift. DATA SOURCES Data are from the 200...

INTRODUCTION The inflow of patients in emergency departments (ED) varies over time. If variations are not anticipated, accumulation of patients and treatment delay may occur. This may trigger adverse events causing excess mortality. The aim of this study was to determine if attending the ED after hours and during weekends was associated with an increased mortality. METHODS We examined the med...

Epidemiological studies have found that long-term night-working women have a higher risk of breast cancer risk than women who do not work at night. According to circadian rhythm disruption hypothesis the underlying mechanism involves suppression of melatonin production caused by exposure to light at night. Circadian genes are responsible for adaptation of circadian rhythm and may influence canc...

The hypothesized association between breast cancer and circadian disruption was evaluated in the Electromagnetic Fields and Breast Cancer on Long Island Study. Participants included 576 women with breast cancer diagnosed from August 1996 to June 1997 and 585 population-based controls (87% and 83% participation rates, respectively) aged < 75 years and living in the same Long Island, New York, ho...

Shift work is associated with a number of negative health outcomes, although it is not known whether it is associated with sick leave. This systematic review therefore aimed to determine whether an association exists between shift work and sick leave. A systematic literature search was conducted in six databases on observational studies. Two reviewers independently selected relevant articles an...

STUDY OBJECTIVES Overnight rostral fluid shift from the legs to the neck may narrow the pharynx and contribute to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) pathogenesis. We hypothesized that night-to-night changes in the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) would be associated with changes in overnight rostral fluid shift. METHODS Twenty-six patients with OSA (AHI ≥10) underwent two polysomnograms 14 days apart wi...

Regrettably, countless nurses who have worked shifts can relate to this true story . Shift work, generally described as working outside daylight hours, is diffi cult physically and mentally but is inherent to many healthcare positions. Approximately 30% of the nursing population is employed in shift work (Hughes & Stone, 2004). However difficult, shift work is preferred by numerous nurses. Some...

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and factors associated with short sleep duration in adolescents from Maravilha - Santa Catarina (SC), southern Brazil. METHODS The sample consisted of 516 adolescents aged 10-19 years of both genders. Issues associated with short sleep duration and difficulty falling asleep, chronotype, daytime sleepi-ness, physical activity, sedentary ...