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Fatigue at sea in Swedish shipping—a field study
Author(s) -
Lützhöft Margareta,
Dahlgren Anna,
Kircher Albert,
Thorslund Birgitta,
Gillberg Mats
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.20814
Subject(s) - medicine , actigraphy , schedule , shift work , aeronautics , sleep (system call) , on board , physical therapy , psychiatry , insomnia , engineering , computer science , aerospace engineering , operating system
Abstract Background Today many merchant ships sail with only two nautical officers, working a shift schedule of 6 hr on and 6 hr off. There are concerns that such a shift schedule is related to fatigue. However, little data exist from onboard studies of seafarers. Methods Data were collected on board 13 ships. Fifteen participants worked on a 6‐on, 6‐off watch system and another 15 on a 4‐on, 8‐off watch system. Electrooculography, actigraphy, diaries, and reaction time tests were used to measure the effects of shift system on fatigue and sleep. Results and Conclusions Sleepiness was higher during the night shift in the 6‐on, 6‐off system. Moreover, sleepiness increased more during the watch in the 6‐on, 6‐off system compared to the 4‐on, 8‐off system. There was a trend toward shorter sleep episodes in the 6‐on, 6‐off system and sleep was more often split into two episodes. Am. J. Ind. Med. 53:733–740, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.