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Circadian and Biological Rhythms in Shift Workers—A Firefighter’s Study

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Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health V

Part of the book series: Studies in Systems, Decision and Control ((SSDC,volume 492))

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Abstract

Shift Work contribute to dysregulation of the typical sleep and awake periods that cause circadian distortions, increasing the risk of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity and developing metabolic diseases. Firefighting is a career that demands much of individuals and has a great impact on their health, making it a high-risk job. Objectives: This study aims to characterize shift workers’ blood pressure profiles in an attempt to understand the repercussions of shift work on the circadian blood pressure rhythm in a sample of professional firefighters. Materials and methods: Participants were classified based on their dipping status: dipper drop of 10–20%; non-dipper 0–10%; invert-dipper when there is a rise in BP; extreme-dipper superior to 20%. Results: Abnormal dipping was found in 55.6% of the participants, and there was a marked difference in gender in percentage where dipping is concerned, with 66.7% of women having abnormal dipping against 50% of the men. It was proved that men had a slower heart rate than women (p-value = 0.029) and that dippers had a higher 24 h DBP compared with those of abnormal dipping (p-value = 0.049). Conclusions: Shift work is a high-risk module of labor, and its consequences require a more thorough examination. Abnormal dip- ping prevailed in firefighters, and the differences between genders need to be better characterized in future studies.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, Coimbra Health School, Rua 5 de Outubro – S. Martinho do Bispo, Apartado 7006, 3046-854, Coimbra, Portugal

    Inês Ferreira Duarte, Joaquim Pereira, João P. M. Lima, Hélder Simões, Telmo Pereira & Jorge Conde

  2. GreenUPorto - Sustainable Agrifood Production Research Centre, Fornelo e Vaira, Portugal

    João P. M. Lima

  3. SUScita-Núcleo de Investigação Em Sustentabilidade, Cidades e Inteligência Urbana, Coimbra, Portugal

    João P. M. Lima & Hélder Simões

  4. ciTechCare - Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology, Leiria, Portugal

    João P. M. Lima

Authors
  1. Inês Ferreira Duarte
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  2. Joaquim Pereira
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  3. João P. M. Lima
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  4. Hélder Simões
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  5. Telmo Pereira
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  6. Jorge Conde
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to João P. M. Lima .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Production and Systems, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Pedro M. Arezes

  2. Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Rui B. Melo

  3. Department of Production and Systems, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Paula Carneiro

  4. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Jacqueline Castelo Branco

  5. School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Ana Colim

  6. Department of Production and Systems School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Nélson Costa

  7. School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Susana Costa

  8. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Joana Duarte

  9. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Joana C. Guedes

  10. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Gonçalo Perestrelo

  11. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    J. Santos Baptista

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Duarte, I.F., Pereira, J., Lima, J.P.M., Simões, H., Pereira, T., Conde, J. (2024). Circadian and Biological Rhythms in Shift Workers—A Firefighter’s Study. In: Arezes, P.M., et al. Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health V. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, vol 492. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38277-2_18

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38277-2_18

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-38276-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-38277-2

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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