https://medicalxpress.com/occupational-medicine-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Occupational medicine Jobs that require pregnant women to bend over could be increasing their risk of miscarriage, a new study says. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-job-miscarriage.html Thu, 08 Oct 2026 16:20:01 EDT news710684209 When female physicians are expecting a child, blanket bans on certain activities—such as surgeries and examinations involving X-rays—are often imposed. This suspension frequently results in a career setback. "For many of our female colleagues, this is a major issue. They enjoy their work, simply want to continue their current duties, or do not want to have to interrupt their specialty training," explains Dr. David Duncker, director of the Hannover Heart Rhythm Center (HHC). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-heart-procedures-shielding-uterine-pregnancy.html Wed, 07 Oct 2026 13:00:01 EDT news710594883 Cleaning kitchens and bathrooms, operating heavy machinery, carrying out agricultural work and performing repair and maintenance tasks: These are some of the activities that new research associates with poorer health later in life. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-physically-intense-health-index-burden.html Tue, 06 Oct 2026 15:40:06 EDT news710516221 Seaweed piling up on a beach might look harmless, but as it begins to rot, it can release gases that are toxic to people. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-seaweed-strandings-health.html Fri, 02 Oct 2026 12:40:02 EDT news710159109 People with evening chronotypes are 1.7 times as likely as morning chronotypes to retire early and receive a disability pension, according to research published online in the journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-night-owls-struggle-age.html Tue, 29 Sep 2026 18:30:04 EDT news709895041 The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for health professionals around the world. A new study published in the journal Nursing Inquiry describes violence that nurses and midwives in Latin America endured—not only physical aggression, but also ethical and emotional harm. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-covid-pandemic-drove-violence-moral.html Thu, 24 Sep 2026 18:20:10 EDT news709474861 From coal miners and construction crews to engineered stone countertop fabricators and foundry workers, more than 2.2 million U.S. workers inhale fine particles of rock, sand or coal every day on the job. After years of exposure, trapped dust can cause thick scar tissue to build up inside the lungs, leading to long-term lung damage commonly known as black lung or silicosis. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ai-screening-million-workers-exposed.html Thu, 24 Sep 2026 17:40:08 EDT news709473902 Agriculture is one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States. Each year, vehicles, machinery, environmental hazards and other incidents cause thousands of injuries and hundreds of fatalities. A thorough understanding of the main risks is key to preventing accidents and promoting agricultural safety. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-interactive-tool-track-agricultural-injuries.html Tue, 22 Sep 2026 17:40:04 EDT news709291001 A study published in Discover Artificial Intelligence used logistic regression, random forest and support vector machine (SVM) to classify health care workers according to their level of psychosocial resilience, using information collected during the COVID-19 pandemic. The logistic regression model produced the most accurate results, with an accuracy of 75.6% and an area under the ROC curve of 0.816, outperforming random forest (72.6%) and support vector machine (70.8%). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-machine-distinguishes-psychological-resilience-health.html Mon, 21 Sep 2026 14:40:05 EDT news709219502 There are substantial health hazards to working with engineered stone countertops, as an article on silicosis, a disease caused by inhaling silica crystals, illustrates in a study appearing in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-stone-countertops-silicosis-lung-disease.html Mon, 21 Sep 2026 00:10:01 EDT news708939781 A new national study of suicide rates across occupations in Australia shows blue-collar male workers are still substantially overrepresented, underscoring the need for greater attention to occupation-specific factors that might increase risk. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-blue-collar-workers-highest-suicide.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 08:00:04 EDT news708846121 A new approach to modeling vocal fold fatigue could improve detection and monitoring of problems as they arise, particularly among people whose jobs depend on sustained voice use. The research, published in the International Journal of Information and Communication Technology, uses a physics-based framework to track changes over time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-tracks-vocal-fatigue.html Tue, 15 Sep 2026 23:00:01 EDT news708697147 Inflammation associated with asthma and other allergic airway diseases can be significantly worsened by exposure to both house dust mite allergens and crystalline silica, according to a new study published in the journal Allergy. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-mites-silica-trigger-pathway-steroid.html Mon, 14 Sep 2026 11:20:10 EDT news708600121 The 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks is a reminder that the horrific events of that day continue to be felt a quarter-century later. While 2,753 people perished in the initial attacks on the World Trade Center, hundreds of people exposed in the aftermath have since died from related illnesses. Columbia Mailman School researchers have led research uncovering some of those health impacts. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-longterm-health-impacts.html Fri, 11 Sep 2026 10:20:10 EDT news708336054 Twenty-five years after the September 11 terrorist attacks, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found that environmental conditions where World Trade Center responders live may influence their long-term physical and mental health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-frailty-ptsd-depression-decades.html Fri, 11 Sep 2026 05:00:05 EDT news708270901 Inside the hazard simulation lab at Iowa State University, Guowen Song watches a column of engineered smoke curl upward from a controlled burn. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-statewide-effort-cancer-firefighters.html Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:00:08 EDT news708239281 Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading medical cause of duty-related deaths among tactical athletes, including military personnel, firefighters, law enforcement officers, emergency medical responders, astronauts and pilots. These individuals face unique physical and environmental demands that can increase cardiovascular risk and require specialized approaches to evaluation and care, according to a new joint American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association scientific statement published today in the journal JACC and Circulation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-guidance-framework-cardiovascular-duty-tactical.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:00:20 EDT news707490074 Hundreds of first responders have told me they remember exactly how they felt during the World Trade Center attacks, even 25 years on. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-decades-toxic-ptsd-brain-aging.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 12:40:05 EDT news707568482 When a wildfire threatens a community, most people don't think to ask whether the firefighters coming to help slept enough the night before, recovered from the previous day's shift or have enough energy left for another day on the fireline. They simply expect firefighters to show up. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-extreme-toll-firefighters-wildfires-crews.html Thu, 27 Aug 2026 11:20:03 EDT news707042342 Twenty-five years after 9/11, FIU researcher Dr. Roberto Lucchini is still working with World Trade Center responders to understand how the toxic exposures and psychological trauma they experienced may affect their health decades later. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-years-reveals-effects-world-center.html Wed, 26 Aug 2026 18:00:03 EDT news706979221 A soot-caked helmet and grimy turnout gear have long been symbols of grit and experience among American firefighters. Yet exposure to contaminated equipment can increase the risk of cancer. Now, attitudes toward protective wear and other safety measures may be shifting in California firehouses. A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Riverside, examines how cancer-prevention practices are taking hold among firefighters in the state. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-culture-firefighters-cancer.html Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:20:10 EDT news706956030 New research from UTHealth Houston found firefighters experience measurable biological changes in their blood and urine within 24 hours of fighting a fire—changes that may help identify early cancer risk, the leading cause of death among firefighters. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-biological-firefighters-urine-blood-hours.html Mon, 24 Aug 2026 17:40:02 EDT news706811222 Fire and medical officials have issued warnings about a supplement offered to Western wildland firefighters who have been exposed to toxic chemicals while battling some of the country's biggest blazes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-wildland-firefighters-supplement-exposure.html Sun, 23 Aug 2026 05:40:01 EDT news706681556 It's 4 a.m., you've finally drifted off, and then the phone rings. It's work calling. You have to go in. The right to disconnect from work has been protected by law in Australia since 2024. This means most employees can refuse to answer calls from work outside their regular work hours. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-oncall-disrupt.html Fri, 21 Aug 2026 18:40:03 EDT news706529007 What jobs are most associated with deaths from radiation-related cancer? Surprisingly, the answer is cabin crew and pilots—ahead of nuclear technologists, whose work involves handling radioactive materials used in medical imaging and treatment. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-cabin-crew-greater-radiationbased-cancer.html Thu, 20 Aug 2026 13:20:01 EDT news706446721 Healthy sleep patterns in midlife are linked to longer working life expectancy, findings from a large study of working-age men and women suggest. The study was published online in Occupational & Environmental Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-healthy-patterns-midlife-linked-longer.html Tue, 18 Aug 2026 18:30:06 EDT news706183022 University of Missouri researchers have found that a simple scheduling change can improve the health and well-being of physicians working overnight shifts. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-small-big-health-benefits-night.html Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:00:05 EDT news706183081 Of more than 500 occupations in the United States, flight attendants and pilots have the highest and second-highest proportions of radiation-related cancer deaths, a new study has found. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-flight-greater-cancer-death.html Mon, 17 Aug 2026 11:00:08 EDT news706181341 Deep-sea divers must be careful to prevent decompression sickness, also known as "the bends," when ascending from the high-pressure depths of the ocean. Failing to do so can result in anything from muscle cramps and skin rash to paralysis and death, depending on the depth they ascend from, how fast they come up and the gases they were breathing while doing so. Decompression sickness occurs when inert gases dissolve into blood and tissues to form dangerous gas bubbles. The same risks can affect people leaving pressurized work environments, submarines or spacecraft airlocks. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-gases-ascent-dangerous-deep-safer.html Fri, 14 Aug 2026 12:40:05 EDT news705924181 A new report documenting California's rapidly growing silicosis epidemic among quartz countertop workers underscores the urgent need for a national effort focused on stronger surveillance, earlier diagnosis and policy interventions to protect workers from a preventable yet often fatal occupational lung disease. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-documents-silicosis-epidemic-quartz-countertop.html Thu, 13 Aug 2026 14:40:07 EDT news705850022