• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.139-153
• /
• 2007

Injury in agriculture is a serious public health issue with a major impact on the lives of Korean farmers. It is one of the leading causes of death and is also a major cause of longand short-term disability. In 2001, the social cost of one accident in agricultural machinery was estimated as 97.7-97.8 million won that is 4 fold of farm household income in Korea. Effective prevention and control of injuries requires a system of surveillance that monitors the incidence of injuries, their causes, treatment and outcomes. This requires an integrated system of data collection, analysis and interpretation and communication. Creating effective injury surveillance system in Korea requires to establish a framework for a national agenda. Discussions regarding the development of the framework should address, but not be limited to issues related to Data Holdings and Linkages; Capacity and Skills; Communication; Interconnection; and Surveillance Products. Ideally, an injury surveillance system would meet the information requirements across all sectors, while allowing each to have the ongoing information it needs for its policy and programming needs. This study was carried out to develop a surveillance system of agricultural injuries in Korea. Study subjects were residents who lived in a typical agricultural area (Yangpyung area in Kyung-gi province). The main data sources were reports of village headmen, compared with data of 'National Emergency Management Agency', 'National Health Insurance Corporation', 'Insurance of National Agricultural Cooperative', and 'Emergency Medical Centers'. Each data were reviewed to validate the strengths and weaknesses.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.30 no.5
• /
• pp.86-91
• /
• 2015

It is important to provide the farmers with practical and effective information of safety and health for individual crop to prevent or reduce occupational injuries in agricultural sector, since work characteristics and risk factors are not the same for all crops. In this study, risk assessment was carried out for cultivating shiitake mushrooms and then safety measures, which were based on the results of the risk assessment, were summarized and presented as the information of safety and health of shittake farmers. Guidelines for safety and health of the farmers of shiitake mushrooms, which were developed based on the risk assesment and safety measures, can be used by the farmers as self-educational tools or by the agricultural facilitators as an educational material for agricultural safety. It is expected that the guidelines can be useful in preventing occupational injuries of shiitake farmers.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.5 no.3
• /
• pp.147-151
• /
• 2014

Background: Agriculture ranks among the most dangerous trades worldwide. There is, however, still a lack of knowledge on nonfatal injuries in agriculture. The aim of this study was to describe the nature and occurrence of nonfatal injuries in farmers in two counties in central Norway. Methods: A questionnaire was sent to 7,004 farmers in Norway. We asked for information about the respondents and the farm, whether the farmer had had work-related injuries on the farm during the past 12 months, and details about the incidence and seriousness of the injury. Results: A total of 2,699 respondents gave a response rate of 42%. Of the respondents, 249 (9.2%) reported one or more work-related injuries. The most usual cause of injury involved an animal, and >75% of these happened inside the outbuilding. Among these, 17.5% had a consequence of sick leave or a more serious result. When all the accidents were analyzed by stepwise logistic regression, only the variables: works alone, has >3,500 stipulated working hours at the farm, and the type of production were statistical significant explanatory variables for having an injury. Conclusion: Incorporating safety aspects to a greater extend in the design and construction of outbuildings would make a substantial contribution to injury prevention in agriculture.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.30 no.4
• /
• pp.517-523
• /
• 2011

Objective: The purpose were understanding the epidemiological characteristics of work related injuries of the farmer and establishing injury prevention and control activity. Background: Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industry and job in Korea. Method: We reviewed previous reports regarding the agricultural injury, injury prevention and control. Results: In the agricultural total injury, there were 45,342 hospitalized injury to farmers, injury rate was 35.8/1,000 farmers/years. Of these injuries, 52.6 percent were classed as work related injury. The farm-related injury rate was 17.5/1,000 farmers/years by analysis of Safety Aid System of Farm Workers. There were 2.4 times as incidence rate for farmers compared to non-farmers. Conclusion: Several strategies are available for injury prevention and control. They are as follows; social concern, survey of farm related injury, injury prevention, injury surveillance system and injury compensation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Agricultural Machinery Conference
• /
• 1993.10a
• /
• pp.666-675
• /
• 1993

In order to prevent bodily injuries frequently suffered in using bush cutters, especially from spattered stones, we developed a unique new cutting system equipped with a fixed blade on top of the rotary blade, and checked into the mowing performance of the cutter. From experimental test of mowing efficiency and measuring test of physical stress (O$_2$ consumption and heartbeat rates) , the new cutting system with a fixed blade proved that it keeps good cutting performance with lower peripheral speed of the rotary blade(22m/sec), compared to that of ordinary cutting blade, yielding more safety in operation. Weight of the cutter head is, however, heavier than that of ordinary machine by about 70% which increased a physical stress on the operator with slightly faster heartbeat rates. In mowing along edge of concrete wall, the operator enjoyed using the cutter with no anxiety , owing to function of the fixed blade.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.34 no.9
• /
• pp.1559-1568
• /
• 2021

Objective: Bedding materials directly contact hooves of dairy cows and they may serve as environmental sources of lameness-associated pathogen. However, the specific composition of bacteria hidden in bedding materials is still not clear. The aim of this study was to determine the effect bedding material and its bacterial composition has on lameness of Holstein heifers. Methods: Forty-eight Holstein heifers with similar body weights were randomly assigned into three groups including sand bedding (SB), concrete floor (CF), and compost bedding (CB). Hock injuries severity and gait performance of dairy cows were scored individually once a week. Blood samples were collected at the end of the experiment and bedding material samples were collected once a week for Illumina sequencing. Results: The CF increased visible hock injuries severity and serum biomarkers of joint damage in comparison to SB and CB groups. Besides, Illumina sequencing and analysis showed that the bacterial community of CB samples had higher similarity to that of SB samples than CF samples. Bacteria in three bedding materials were dominated by gastrointestinal bacteria and organic matter-degrading bacteria, such as Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and norank JG30-KF-cM45. Lameness-associated Spirochaetaceae and Treponeme were only detected in SB and CB samples with a very low relative abundance (0% to 0.08%). Conclusion: The bacterial communities differed among bedding materials. However, the treponemes pathogens involved in the pathogenesis of lameness may not be a part of microbiota in bedding materials of dairy cows.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.13 no.4
• /
• pp.440-447
• /
• 2022

Background: Agricultural handle equipment is present on all production areas' farms. They are handy and portable; however, excessive use can lead to acute traumas or accidental injuries. Repetitive movements, awkward postures, and hand-arm vibrations predispose them to pain and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. The purpose of this study was to observe the interaction of handle equipment in terms of electromyographic activity and analyze the postural work-related alterations. Materials and methods: Twenty male agricultural operators, mean age 24±1.54 years, underwent the electromyographic analysis testing their muscular activities with a brushcutter, electric saw, and hedge trimmer in four different test conditions. Results: The brushcutter proved to be the agricultural handle equipment with the higher mean frequency (3.37±0.38 Hz) and root mean square (5.25±1.24 ms^-2). Furthermore, the digital postural analysis showed a general asymmetry of the main arm and the respective side of the trunk. The head resulted right inclined in the anterior frontal plane by 5.7°±1.2°; the right scapula lower than the left in the posterior frontal plane (8.5°±1.8°), and a working trunk inclination of 34.15°±5.7°. Conclusions: Vibrations of handle equipment and awkward working postures represent a risk for agricultural operators. Preventive measures are required to avoid young operators from experiencing musculoskeletal disorders all lifelong.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
• /
• v.28 no.2
• /
• pp.60-66
• /
• 2015

Purpose: Cultivator accidents are frequent and often lead to abdomino-perineal organ injury and, if severe, to death. This study presents the clinical characteristics, outcomes, and factors associated with mortality in patients who sustained an abdomino-perineal organ injury in cultivator accidents. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the records of 53 patients who visited the emergency department of a tertiary hospital with abdomino-perineal organ injuries caused in cultivator accidents from April 2005 to March 2010. Results: All 53 patients had visited other medical institutions before visiting our hospital. Their mean age was $64.0{\pm}11.1$ (range, 20-80) years and 32 (60.4%) patients were 65 or older. The male-to-female ratio was 46:7. The chief complaint was abdominal pain (38 cases, 71.7%). The 53 patients included 41 cultivator operators (77.4%), 11 passengers (20.8%), and 1 passerby (1.9%). The causes of the injuries included a direct impact of the handlebar in 20 cases (37.7%), a rollover in 21 cases (39.6%), a fall in 10 cases (18.9%), and a wheel in two cases (3.8%). Several of the 53 patients had injuries to multiple abdomino-perineal organs, and the injured organs included the liver (23 cases, 26.4%), spleen (16 cases, 18.4%), pancreas (7 cases, 8.0%), small bowel (7 cases, 8.0%), mesentery (6 cases, 6.9%), adrenal gland (5 cases, 5.8%), and other organs. According to the abbreviated injury scale (AIS) dictionary, a thoracic injury was the most frequent co-injury (33 of 53 cases, 62.3%). Abdomino-perineal surgery was performed in 31 cases (58.8%) and angio-embolization was performed for six liver and two kidney injuries. Thirteen patients died (24.5%); all were males. The Injury Severity Scale (ISS) was lower in the survivors ($17.8{\pm}8.5$ vs. $27.0{\pm}16.0$; p=0.010). Conclusion: With the aging of agricultural workers, safety education programs should be implemented. Furthermore, the patient transfer system in agricultural areas must be improved.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
• /
• v.31 no.3
• /
• pp.219-236
• /
• 2006

Objectives: To develop a model of a official management system for agricultural disease, injury and accidents, We analyzed current Korean status and management system about occupational injury and accident of farmers. Methods: For national management systems of industry safety and health and current status of occupational injuries and accidents of farmers, related literature such as books, theses, articles, and web documents were collected and analyzed. Results and Conclusion: The regulations of protecting occupational injury and accidents of farmers are suggested as follows: (1)insurance and compensation act for occupational injury and accident of farmers, (2)setting standards of occupational injuries and accidents of farmers, (3)mandating the usage of safety devices for agricultural vehicles and equipments, (4)reporting occupational injuries and accidents that occur among farmers, (5)registering pesticides and assessing safety usage, (6)implementing safety training, (7)supporting personal protective equipments and agricultural safe facilities etc.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.29-37
• /
• 2002

This study was conducted to compare ozone sensitivity among Betula sp. by measuring visible foliar injuries and growth responses. Four Betula sp.(B. costata, B. davurica, B. platyphylla var.japonica and B. ermani) grown in the greenhouse, were transplanted in the plastic pots. One-year-old seedlings of four Betula sp. exposed to relatively high ozone concentration(100 ppb) for 8 h day$^{-1}$ for 5 weeks in fumigation chamber. We measured visible injuries, leaf numbers and leaf areas at the end of experiments, and growth effects were evaluated by measuring the relative growth rate(RGR) of height and diameter and the dry weights of leaf, stem and root once a week. Four Betula species showed the significant differences for growth responses by the ozone treatment. Growths of three species, except for B. ermani, were significantly reduced by the $O_3$ exposure. B. costata with leaf senescence at the early growing stage and B. davurica indicated highest visible foliar injury rate may be the sensitive species at the 100 ppb ozone concentration. Although the growth rate of B. ermani was reduced by 100 ppb ozone exposure at the early growing stage, B. ermani may be a tolerance species that recover the growth rate with the adaptation for the high ozone concentration.