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Over 198,000 U.S. flight personnel work in
commercial aircraft cabins with potential exposure to cosmic ionizing
radiation, alterations of circadian rhythm from travel across time zones,
cabin pollutants such as tobacco smoke and ozone, physical demands such
as prolonged standing, and psychological demands such as job stress. Few
studies have characterized air cabin exposures and health outcomes among
U.S. flight crew. In partnership with the Federal Aviation Administration,
the National Cancer Institute, the HHS Office of Women’s Health
and the Department of Defense Women’s Health Research Program, NIOSH
has established a program of research in this unique occupational group.
Studies are underway to characterize exposures in the aircraft cabin environment
and to examine a variety of health effects in flight attendants and pilots.
Health effects under investigation include menstrual function, pregnancy
outcome, infertility, cancer, respiratory symptoms, job stress, physical
demands and overall mortality. These studies will help scientists to determine
if flight crews’ working environments put them at risk of adverse
health effects, and if so, what measures would be needed to reduce that
risk.
Current Reports:
Note: Links to papers published in journals connect to
abstracts and bibliographic information in NIOSHTIC-2, the
NIOSH publications database. NIOSHTIC-2 entries include links to source
journals
- Monitoring
microbial populations on wide-body commercial passenger aircraft
Ann Occup Hyg 2008 Mar; 52(2):139-149
- Assessing total fungal concentrations on commercial passenger aircraft
using mixed-effects modeling
J Occup Environ Hyg 2008 Jan; 5(1)48-58
- Evaluating fungal populations by genera/species on wide body commercial
passenger aircraft and in airport terminals
Ann Occup Hyg 2007 Mar;
51(3):281-291
- Chromosome translocations and cosmic sources of ionizing radiation: the
NIOSH-NCI airline pilot biomarker study
Proceedings of the 98th American
Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, April 14-18, 2007, Los
Angeles, California. Philadelphia, PA: American Association for Cancer
Research, 2007 Apr; 48:833
- Mortality among a cohort of US flight attendants
Occup Environ Med 2007
Dec; 64(12):e12
- Cosmic
radiation exposure of commercial flight crew
Occupational Radiation Protection:
Protecting Workers Against Exposure to Ionizing Radiation: Proceedings
of an International Conference on Occupational Radiation Protection -
Protecting Workers against Exposure to Ionizing Radiation, Geneva, Switzerland,
August 26-30, 2002. Vienna, Austria: International Atomic Energy Agency,
Publication CN-91, 2003 Jul; :406-409 )
(Aviat Space Environ Med 2004 Sep; 75(9):806-810)
- Sleep
disturbance among female flight attendants and teachers in a reproductive
biomonitoring study
Am J Epi 2000 Jun; 151(11)(Suppl):S82
- Evaluation
of airborne culturable fungal concentrations on wide-body commercial
passenger aircraft
American Industrial Hygiene
Conference and Expo, May 21-26, 2005, Anaheim, California. Fairfax,
VA: American Industrial Hygiene Association, 2005 May; :7
- Numerical
simulation of airflow and airborne pathogen transport in aircraft cabins
- part II: numerical simulation of airborne pathogen
transport
ASHRAE Trans 2005 Jan; 111(Part 1):764-768
- Numerical
simulation of airflow and airborne pathogen transport in aircraft cabins
- part I: numerical simulation of the flow field
ASHRAE
Trans 2005 Jan; 111(Part 1):755-763
- Self-reported
flight hours vs. company records for epidemiologic studies of flight
attendants
Aviat Space Environ Med 2004 Sep;
75(9):806-810
- Prevalence
of respiratory symptoms among female flight attendants and
teachers
Occup Environ Med 2003 Dec; 60(12):929-934
- Cancer
incidence in airline cabin crew
Occup Environ Med 2003
Nov; 60(11):805-806
- Body
clock disruption, linked with travel across time zones, seen in
study of
flight attendants
Information about a NIOSH Study that
shows disruptions in circadian rhythm in female flight attendants.
- Measuring
and identifying large-scale metrics for circadian rhythm disruption
in
female flight attendants
Scand J Work, Environ &
Health 2003 Oct; 29(5):337-346
- Job
stress among female flight attendants
J Occup Environ
Med 2003 Jul; 45(7):703-714 - A
specific case: cosmic radiation exposures of flight
crew
Occupational Radiation Protection: Protecting
Workers Against Exposure to Ionizing Radiation. Vienna, Austria:
International Atomic Energy Agency, 2003 Jul; :407-408 - Circadian
rhythm disruption: a chronic occupational hazard among flight attendants?
Working
Partnerships: Applying Research to Practice, NORA Symposium 2003,
Washington, DC: National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health, 2003 Jun; :126
- Characterization
of endotoxin and 3-hydroxy fatty acid levels in air and settled dust in
commercial aircraft cabins
Indoor Air 2003 Jun;
13(2):166-173
- Feasibility
issues in reproductive biomonitoring of female flight attendants
and
teachers
J Occup Environ Med 2002 Oct 44(10):947-955
- Measurements
of cosmic radiation exposures of commercial flight crew
American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Expo, June
1-6, 2002, San Diego, California. Fairfax, VA: American Industrial
Hygiene Association, 2002 Jun; :5-6
- Measurements
of indoor air quality on commercial transport aircraft Indoor
Air 2002 Jun; :782-787
- Radiation
dose estimation for epidemiologic studies of flight
attendants
Am J Ind Med, 2002 Jan 41(1):27-37
- The
NIOSH/FAA working women's health study: evaluation of the
cosmic-radiation exposures of flight attendants
Health
Phys 2000 Nov, 79(5):553-559
Related Resources
Cosmic Radiation and Air Travel
External Link: http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/env/cosmic/WHO_Info_Sheet_Cosmic_Radiation.pdf
PDF150 KB (4 pages)
World Health Organization Information Sheet November 2005
NIOSH Health Hazard Evaluations:
NIOSH conducts Health Hazard Evaluations (HHEs) to find out whether there
are health hazards to employees caused by exposures or conditions in the
workplace.
Other Web Sites:
What Commercial Aircraft Crewmembers Should Know About Their Occupational Exposure to Ionizing Radiation
External Link: http://www.faa.gov/safety/programs_initiatives/health/aircrew
PDF
682 KB (14 pages)
Training guide prepared by the FAA's Civil Aeospace Medical Institute
(CAMI).
FAA's
Radiobiology Research Team page
External Link: http://www.faa.gov/education_research/research/med_humanfacs/aeromedical/radiobiology/
Features "CARI-6," on online calculator that determines estimated
radiation doses received on an aircraft flying a great circle route between
any two airports in the world.
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