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Ultra violet (UV) solar energy can cause several negative effects to the skin and eyes in case of overexposure. To protect people from erythemal damage, personal erythemal exposure must be carefully assessed when outdoor activities are carried out. The direct measure with scientific instruments is impracticable to common people, and indirect methods assess the exposure only on the horizontal plane: this work developed a mathematical model to assess erythemal exposure to all the body districts. UVA irradiance and erythemal irradiance were measured on several inclined planes, oriented to the four cardinal directions, in seven environments with multiple sky conditions. The UV erythemal (UVE) ratio between erythemal irradiance on an inclined plane (Iery°) and UVA irradiance on a horizontal plane (IUVAh) was calculated. The results indicate that the UVE = Iery°/IUVAh is variable across the day and depends on the plane orientation, its degree of inclination, and sky conditions. Mathematical models to calculate erythemal exposure in clear, intermediate and overcast sky conditions on planes with different inclinations and orientations were derived from the daily trends of the UVE = Iery°/IUVAh. The application procedure of the mathematical model to the vertical plane oriented to the south is provided as an example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. It is prescribed to determine blue-light hazard (BLH) weighted radiances, $ {L_\textrm{B}} $ L B , for an assessment of spotlights with an angular subtense $ \alpha \ge 11{\mkern 1mu} \,\textrm{mrad} $ α ≥ 11 mrad . The BLH weighted irradiance, $ {E_\textrm{B}} $ E B , can be used alternatively for smaller sources. Appropriate instruments are not common among persons commissioned with risk assessment (RA), and especially $ {L_\textrm{B}} $ L B measurements may be challenging. Therefore, a practical BLH RA approach is proposed that is based on illuminance, $ {E_\textrm{v}} $ E v , pre-calculated blackbody BLH efficacies of luminous radiation, $ K_{\textrm{B,v}}^{\textrm{Planck}} $ K B,v Planck , and solid angle considerations. Methods. The practicality of this method was examined and compared against other RA approaches. Results. To ensure comparability of the applied instruments, measurements were performed close to a radiance standard, showing deviations within the lamp's expanded uncertainties ( $ \lt 4{\mkern 1mu} \% $ < 4 %), whereas the deviations were $ \pm 15\% $ ± 15 % for longer distances. Focusing on a complex light-emitting diode (LED) spotlight, all detected values could be converted to $ {L_\textrm{B}} $ L B by means of the RA methods within $ \pm 20\% $ ± 20 %. Two field tests with several spotlights yielded maximum permissible exposure durations (MPED) obtained from the different RA approaches that agreed among each other within uncertainties largely below $ \pm 30\% $ ± 30 %. Conclusion. The general practicality of the proposed $ {E_\textrm{v}} $ E v method can be concluded for a workplace BLH RA of white-light sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article presents the new Italian database of physical agents, which is available at http://www.portaleagentifisici. it. It supports in risk assessment employers who have to comply with Italy's Legislative Decree 81/2008 (transposing into law European Union Directives 2003/10/EC, 2002/44/EC, 2004/40/EC and 2006/25/EC). The database currently contains measurements and declared European Community (EC) values from over 2540 machines; in particular, the database hosts data on mechanical vibration from over 1430 hand-held power tools (e.g., pneumatic and electric hammers, chainsaws, grinders, drills, sanders and saws) and from over 1020 whole-body machines (e.g., buses, fork lifts and wheel tractors). The database is continuously updated as soon as new experimental and declared data are acquired. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a method previously proposed in the literature (Sisto R, Pinto I, Stacchini N et al. Infrared radiation exposure in traditional glass factories. AIHAJ 2000; 61: 5–10) to evaluate the exposure to infrared (IR) radiation when the source can be approximated as a black body is implemented in a mathematical code developed in Matlab. Some practical situations are discussed. A comparison between the results obtained by a spectroradiometric technique and that obtained by using a broadband radiometer and the modelling of the source is shown. The IR radiation exposure evaluations in a cement industry and in a steel forge are shown and compared to the exposure limit values. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The aim of this study was to investigate whether systematic differences in solar UV exposure on a specific anatomical site (chest) exist among three groups of Italian sunbathers: healthy subjects (suntanned and non-suntanned individuals) and subjects affected by abnormally high sensitivity to solar exposure. A second aim of the study was to search for a possible relation among biological markers of individual response to UV exposure (such as skin colorimetric parameters, skin temperature and changes in free radical amounts [FR] in the blood) and photosensitivity. FR in the blood were analyzed because of their possible influence on UV carcinogenesis. Measurements of ambient doses ( i.e. incident erythemally weighted irradiance on a horizontal surface over a specified period of time) and erythemally effective UV dose received by an anatomical site (here called personal dose or exposure on a specific anatomical site) were investigated. Personal doses received by the chest were determined using polysulfone dosimetry. Exposure Ratio (ER), defined as the ratio between the personal dose and the corresponding ambient dose during the same exposure period, was then calculated. Measuring of skin color in the Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage L* (luminance), a* (redness), b* (yellowness) system and skin temperature were also carried out on the inner upper arm (nonexposed skin site) and on the chest. It was found that the median value of ER was 0.20 (min: 0.09 and max: 0.34) for suntanned individuals, it was 0.17 (min: 0.13 and max: 0.42) for non-suntanned individuals and it was 0.19 (min: 0.14 and max: 0.34) for photosensitive individuals. There were no significant differences across the groups in their median ER scores. In addition, the statistical analysis showed that L* on the exposed site before exposure demonstrated consistently higher median scores after exposure in all groups. The b* value after exposure was significantly lower than before exposure in all participants, while no significant differences for a* were observed before or after exposure between or within the groups. Our findings suggest that photodermatoses are not significantly related to ER and to the changes in biological markers due to too short-term UV exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultraviolet radiation is known to cause both benefits and harmful effects on humans. The adverse effects mainly involve two target organs, skin and eye, and can be further divided into short- and long-term effects. The present case report describes an accidental exposure of two health-care workers to ultraviolet radiation produced by a germicidal lamp in a hospital pharmacy. The germicidal lamp presented a spectrum with an intense UV-C component as well as a modest UV-B contribution. Overexposure to UV-C radiation was over 100 times as large as the ICNIRP exposure limits. A few hours after the exposure, the two subjects reported symptoms of acute UV injury and both of them continued having significant clinical signs for over 2 years. In this study, we describe acute and potentially irreversible effects caused by high UV exposure. In addition, we present the results of risk assessment by occupational exposure to germicidal lamps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]