Vol 6, No 2 (2020)

Purpose: to study the acceptability of health risk factors of members of crews for shipbuilding purposes.

Materials and methods. The data on occupational pathology of seafarers over the period 2009–2018 were analyzed. The primary incidence of the adult population of nine coastal regions was studied. A survey was conducted on discomfort of working conditions, habitability factors of 174 crew members of vessels of 3 types.

Results and discussion. There is no records about occupational diseases of sailors over the past decade. The procedure for conducting a survey on the levels of discomfort of crew members is proposed.

Conclusion. In a simplified model of the vessel operation, it is possible to use the average discomfort values of the prototypes of crew members as preliminary indicators of the object’s effectiveness in terms of habitability.

Purpose. To evaluate therapeutic options of rhythmic transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in the treatment of consequences of minor traumatic brain injury.

Materials and methods. A neuropsychological examination using standard scales for assessing cognitive functions, as well as the Beck depression inventory, the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the MFI-20 multidimensional fatigue inventory was performed on patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and complaints of decreased memory, attention, general weakness and fatigue. Patients were split into two groups. Active group (24 patients) received rhythmic TMS besides standard treatment (neurometabolic, nootropic) while control group (23 patients) received only standard therapy. After the treatment course, the reassessment of neuropsychological examination with the following statistic processing was performed.

Study results. Comparison of treatment results in the active and control groups showed the highest efficacy of rTMS in the treatment of depression (p=0,016), anxiety (p=0,001) and in fatigue lowering (p=0,017) in patients with consequences of minor TBI.

Conclusion. The data obtained from the study point the high efficacy of treatment of consequences of minor TBI by means of rTMS that displays in lowering of fatigue, anxiety, and depression severity when using.

The paper reviews issues of drug use in the spread of HIV infection through sexual and injection routes, interaction of drug addicts with the general population, the main psychoactive substances used by drug addicts, the practices that contribute to the transmission of HIV from a drug addict to a healthy person, the representation of drug addicts in risk groups, the course of infections among injecting drug users (IDUs), treatment of drug use and infections in IDUs. The role of drug addiction in maintaining the HIV epidemic is shown. It is observed that people involved in seafaring are in high-risk area by drug addiction as well as by spread of HIV infection. Marine regions are among the most affected.

Purpose. To establish the emergent-synergistic biopsychosocial determinants of the resiliency of subjects of extreme activity.

Materials and methods. To identify the determinants of resiliency 764 male subjects of various occupational groups, whose daily activities included an extreme component at a substantive level, were examined. All respondents were divided into 2 groups: a group of professionals with a high level of resiliency and a group of respondents with a low level of resiliency.

Results. Comparison of biopsychosocial features of subjects of extreme activity with the different level of resiliency showed that respondents with the high level of resiliency were focused on strategic life utilization, possessedsthenichyperthymic-demonstrative type of the personality, rational perception of reality, adequate level of aspiration, satisfaction with achievements path from the past to the present. Representatives of group with the low level of resiliencypreferred tactical use of psychophysiological resources, were characterized by sthenichyperthymic type of the personality with prevalence of domination in interpersonal communication, the irrational attitude towards reality, overestimated level of aspiration with orientation towards the future achievements.

The purpose of the study was the assessment of the oral health in seafarers of the shipping company and raising the level of oral hygiene in a long voyage.

Materials and methods. The study examined the dental health of 106 male sailors aged 45–59 years, working in one of the country’s shipping companies. The assessment of dental health among seafarers was carried out using generally accepted examination methods before going on a long voyage and immediately after returning from it.

Results and discussion. It has been established that more than half of the seafarers (59,43%) of the shipping company go on long trips without full mouth debridement. On average, 1,76 carious teeth per 1 sailor, and 91,51% of sailors go swimming with chronic inflammatory periodontal pathology, which requires tightening control over the oral health of seafarers of the shipping company in the pre-navigation period.

Purpose. Evaluation of protective overcoming behavior in naval professionals with (or without) signs of occupational burnout.

Materials and methods. The study enrolled 250 naval professionals aged from 25 to 45 years. Subjects were divided into two groups — without (group 1 (n=91 men)) and with (group 2 (n=159 men) signs of occupational burnout who showed strategies and models of coping behavior, psychological defense mechanisms by set of psychodiagnostic tests.

Results and discussion. It was found that naval professionals without signs of occupational burnout use more constructive strategies and behavior patterns when coping with stress — active, prosocial and indirect behavior strategy and they represent significantly higher values of developed psychological defenses in comparison with individuals with signs of occupational burnout who use passive, asocial and direct behavior strategies.

Conclusion. In order to prevent occupational burnout in surveyed individuals, it is advisable to conduct training in use of constructive coping and the best psychological defenses.

Purpose. To assess the impact of professional factors on the biological age of the cardiovascular system (BA CVS) of the Navy personnel serving in the conditions of deep submergence vehicles (GSV).

Materials and methods. Personnel of the GSV crews in the quantity of 77, who were not exposed to high pressure of the gas and water environment were examined. Indicators of the magnitude of BA CVS characterizing the state of the vascular wall were studied.

The results of the study. Professionally determined hemodynamic changes were revealed.

Conclusion. The results of the study can improve the cardiologic screening of Navy specialists.

Purpose. To analyze results of questionnaire survey of naval medical service specialists on the question of processing of reporting documentation during the cruise.

Materials and methods. Questionnaire survey of chief medical officers, analysis of documents, Fisher angular transformation.

Results and discussion. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of questionnaires was conducted. The analysis showed that the reporting form shall be simplified and the chief medical officer should be given greater freedom in analyzing various aspects of the medical support of the cruise (the report should be less formalized).

Conclusion. Introduction of new reporting forms will allow to evaluate the efficiency of medical component during cruise and to give scientifically based recommendations to military equipment designers, ergonomists, and fleet command on issues of optimization of habitability specifications, implementation of new life-support technologies and lowering the accident rate on naval facilities.

Purpose. Against the background of new coronavirus disease COVID-19 and increasing cases of infection of the personnel of naval ships and vessels of NATO countries, leadership of great maritime powers has to initiate the correction of naval policy and its adaptation to contemporary conditions, seeks an increasing sustainability of naval structures to future epidemic risks and intends to minimize the effects of quarantine restrictions.

Materials and methods. Aspects of work of commanding officers and captains of vessels (officials) aimed at prevention of introducing and spread of actual infection at two stages of epidemic prevention measures were examined: 1) in the pre-voyage preparation period; 2) when performing sea duties, in the case of appearance of a crew member suspicious for infection with a novel coronavirus disease COVID-19 on board ship.

Results and discussion. The experience of the Russian Navy in the implementation of organizational, educational, epidemic prevention and control measures was presented. It allowed to confine the actual disease on ships.

Sample size calculation in a planning phase is still uncommon in Russian research practice. This situation threatens validity of the conclusions and may introduce Type I error when the false null hypothesis is accepted due to lack of statistical power to detect the existing difference between the means. Comparing two means using unpaired Students’ ttests is the most common statistical procedure in the Russian biomedical literature. However, calculations of the minimal required sample size or retrospective calculation of the statistical power were observed only in very few publications. In this paper we demonstrate how to calculate required sample size for comparing means in unpaired samples using WinPepi and Stata software. In addition, we produced tables for minimal required sample size for studies when two means have to be compared and body mass index and blood pressure are the variables of interest. The tables were constructed for unpaired samples for different levels of statistical power and standard deviations obtained from the literature.