Objective Underground working environment and shift work may have adverse physical and mental health effects in coal miners, but few studies report the effects on neurobehavioral function. This study aims to understand the distribution characteristics and influencing factors of neurobehavioral function of coal miners in different workplaces through Neurobehavioral Core Test Battery (NCTB), and provide evidence for early intervention of occupational hazards.
Methods A total of 652 male coal miners from a state-owned coal mine in Shanxi Province were selected from April to June 2017 and divided into three groups (ground group, underground front-line group, and underground auxiliary group) according to assigned workplaces. The basic information of coal miners was collected through questionnaires, and profile of mood state (POMS) and neurobehavioral function of coal miners were evaluated by WHO NCTB. Chi-square test, covariance analysis, and multivariate analysis of variance were used to analyze the factors of neurobehavioral changes.
Results Except PMOSV score above average, the other five PMOS subscale scores were at low level. The results of behavior function test showed that the average simple reaction time was (0.50±0.16) s; the subjects scored higher in recalling digit span in forward order (11.72±2.20) than in backward order (5.50±2.42); in 90 s, 45.34±19.57 correct digit symbol occurred; the correct rate of Benton Visual Retention (BVR) was 65.9%; the scores of Santa Ana Preferred Hand (SANP) and Santa Ana Non-preferred Hand (SANN) were close; correct and wrong dot numbers accounted for 61.5% and 38.5% of total pursuit aiming score respectively. The results of multivariate analysis of variance showed that workplace affected the scores of POMSF, Santa Ana Manual Dexterity (SANP and SANN), BVR, and pursuit aiming (correct dot number); compared to the ground workers, the scores of POMSF, and Santa Ana Manual Dexterity in the underground workers were higher, while the scores of BVR and pursuit aiming (correct dot number) were lower (P < 0.05); the scores of POMS (except vigor-activity) in the shift workers were all higher than those of the non-shift workers, while the scores of five behavioral functions (backward and total score of digital span, BVR, correct dot number, and total dot number) were lower than those of the non-shift workers (P < 0.05). There were also negative effects on the scores of selected POMS or behavioral functions among workers who were older, or had longer length of service, lower education level, poor quality of sleep, lower monthly income, and hypertension (P < 0.05).
Conclusion There are differences in neurobehavioral function of coal miners in different workplaces, and shift work has influences on many aspects of neurobehavioral function; age, length of service, education level, quality of sleep, and hypertension are also possible influencing factors of neurobehavioral function changes of coal miners.
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