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Cognitive symptoms and welding fume exposure
John A S Ross1, Jennifer I Macdiarmid, Sean Semple
1Scottish Centre for Indoor Air, Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Section of Population Health, University of Aberdeen School of Medicine and Dentistry Polwarth Building Foresterhill Aberdeen AB25 2ZD UK. j.a.ross@abdn.ac.uk
Cognitive symptoms were more prevalent in UK professional divers who also worked as welders. However, study results indicate no significant link between cognitive issues and welding fume exposure or diving experience.
Area of Science:
- Occupational health
- Neurology
- Environmental health
Background:
- UK professional divers with welding experience report higher rates of cognitive symptoms (28%) compared to non-welding divers (18%) or offshore workers (6%).
- This highlights a potential occupational health concern for combined diver-welder roles.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between cognitive symptoms and occupational exposures in professional divers and welders.
- To determine if welding fume exposure or diving activities are associated with cognitive deficits.
Main Methods:
- A postal questionnaire study compared three groups: professional divers who welded (PDW), professional welders who did not dive (NDW), and offshore workers who did neither (NDNW).
- Cognitive symptoms were assessed using the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ), and exposure was quantified for welding fumes (mg m(-3) days) and diving (number of dives/saturation days).
- Health-related quality of life was measured using the Short Form 12 (SF12) questionnaire.
Main Results:
- While PDW reported higher mean CFQ scores than NDW and NDNW, all scores remained within normative ranges.
- No significant association was found between cognitive symptom scores (CFQ) and quantified welding fume exposure or diving exposure after adjusting for age, alcohol consumption, and somatization.
- Health-related quality of life (SF12) scores were consistent across all study groups.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive symptomatology in professional divers and welders is not significantly associated with retrospectively assessed welding fume exposure or diving experience.
- Cognitive symptom levels in all studied groups, including those with combined diver-welder roles, did not exceed established normative values.
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