Criteria for evaluating working physical fitness of mine rescuers
Authors:
Jirák Zdeněk 1; Lvončík Samuel 2,3; Tomášková Hana 4; Bužga Marek 1; Trlicová Michaela 1; Tekielová Denisa 1
Authors‘ workplace:
Ústav fyziologie, LF OU Ostrava, vedoucí doc. RNDr. Pavol Švorc, CSc.
1; Karvinská hornická nemocnice a. s., ředitel Ing. Ivan Stejskal
2; SALVE PZS, s. r. o., Liptovský Mikuláš, ředitel MUDr. Samuel Lvončík
3; Ústav epidemiologie a ochrany veřejného zdraví, LF OU Ostrava, vedoucí prof. MUDr. Vladimír Janout, CSc.
4
Published in:
Pracov. Lék., 65, 2013, No. 1-2, s. 6-13.
Category:
Original Papers
Overview
Objective:
The authors investigated physical fitness of professional and voluntary mine rescuers at the Ostrava-Karviná coal mine district and evaluated, whether the so far used criteria for evaluating their ability to perform the work of coal mine rescuers in the underground coal mines.
Methods:
With the framework of follow-up medical examinations the basic hematological and biochemical testes were performed in a cohort of 685 mine rescuers. The cohort encompassed the groups of professional rescuers and technicians of the Ostrava Main Mining Rescue Station and a group of voluntary rescuers. Basic anthropometric examination and examination of physical fitness was made by a continuous load test up to the maximum of bicycle ergometer in all examined individuals. The fitness of the mine rescuers was compared with so far used criteria for evaluating working qualifications of mine rescuers and fitness of a control group of professional mine rescuers performed in 1979.
Results:
With the exception of the youngest age group the professional mine rescuers reached significantly higher VO2max and especially VO2max/kg values as compared with technicians and some age groups of voluntary rescuers. Present rescuers of all age categories have higher body mass and % of body fat and reach significantly higher values of VO2max/kg in comparison with the control group of mine rescuers in 1979.
Conclusions:
Present criteria for evaluating working qualifications of the mine rescuers are not fulfilled by 30% of the examined individuals. In view of the required performance the present limits are suitable under the condition that the mine rescuers at the age of 50 to 59 years will not be engaged in actions requiring extremely high physical load.
Keywords:
physical fitness – mining – mine rescuers
Sources
1. Andersen, K. L., Shephard, R., Denolin, H., Varnauskas, E., Masironi, R. et al. Fundamentals of exercise testing. WHO: Geneva 1971.
2. Borský, I. Reaktibilita ľudského organizmu pri rôznych formách svalového zaťaženia. Záverečná správa, Bratislava 1975.
3. Hardcastle, S. G., Reardon, F. D., Kenny, G. P., Allen, C. Assessing the work intentensity of mine rescue activities and its relevance in applying heat stress management protocols. Mine Ventilation, D. C. Panigrahi (Ed.). Proc. 9th International Mine Ventilation Congress, India 2009, Oxford & IBH Publishing, s. 1–13. ISBN: 9788120417519.
4. Harzbecker, K., Krause, M., Mährlein, W., Schettler, R. Langzeitbelastungsuter-unterssuchungen unter Sauerstoffmangel bei Grubenwehrangehörigen. Z. ges. inn. Med., 1980, 35, 15, s. 615–619.
5. Hollmann, W. Höchst- und Dauerleistungsfähigkeit des Sportlers. München, J. A. Barth, 1963.
6. Hollmann, W. Körperliches Training als Prävention von Herz-Kreislaufkrankheiten. Hippokrates-Verlag Stuttgart 1965.
7. Jirák, Z., Rozvadovská, Š., Coufalová, H. Srovnání různých vyšetřovacích metod a jednotlivých ukazatelů získaných při pracovním zátěžovém vyšetřování. Pracov. Lék., 1974, 26, 6, s. 202–206.
8. Jirák, Z., Lojová, E. Výsledky vyšetření fyzické zdatnosti důlních záchranářů a pracovní zátěž záchranářů v akci za modelových podmínek. Pracov. Lék., 1979, 31, 2, s. 43–48.
9. Jirák, Z., Šimíček, J., Bužga, M., Tomášková, H., Křenková, M. Trend of fitness and selected anthropological characteristics of the young population in the north moravian region (Czech republic) in the past 25 years. Anthropologie, 2003, XLI/3, s. 263–276.
10. Jirák, Z., Šimíček, J., Tomášková, H., Bužga, M., Zavadilová, V., Čermáková, Z., Tersař, Z. Vývoj fyzické zdatnosti a zdravotní stav mužské a ženské populace severomoravského regionu ve věku 45 až 60 let za posledních 25 let. České pracovní lékařství, 2004, 3, s. 107–116.
11. Kampmann, B., Bresser, G., Piekarski, C. Stress and Strain of Mine Rescue Teams During a Standard Training Procedure. Appl. Occup. Ednviron. Hyg., 1977, 12, 12, s. 952–956.
12. Lhotská, L., Bláha, P. O., Vignerová, J., Roth, Z., Prokopec, M. V. Celostátní antropologický výzkum dětí a mládeže 1991 (České země). SZÚ: Praha, 1993.
13. Piekarski Ergospirometrie: Eine geeignete Methode zur Leistungsbeurteilung in der Arbeitsmedizin? Zeitschrift für Kardiologie, 1994, 83, Suppl. 3, s. 173–177.
14. Seliger, V., Bartůněk, Z. Mean values of various indices of physical fitness in the investigation of Czechoslovak population agend 12–55 years. Praha: ČSTV, 1976.
15. Shephard, R. J. Endurance Fitness. University of Toronto Press, 1969.
16. Spencer, T. D. Medical aspects of mine rescue. In Rogan, J. M. Medicine in the mining industries. London, Heinemann, 1972.
17. Varley, F. Study of heat-stress exposures and interventions for mine rescue workers. Society for mining, metallurgy, and exploration. Transactions, 2004, 316, s. 133–142.
Labels
Hygiene and epidemiology Hyperbaric medicine Occupational medicineArticle was published in
Occupational Medicine
2013 Issue 1-2
Most read in this issue
- Compensation exercise in patients with occupational lesion of ulnar nerve in the elbow region
- Focal dystonia in professional musicians
- Psychohygiene (not only) as prevention of the burn-out syndrome in medical management
- Noise from the occupational medical point of view