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Essay on Health Risks For Crew On Ultra Long Flights
Long haul flights have been the causes of many diseases and effects caused on the human body and pose some serious health care risks.
Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT)
One of the most common disease that can be caused by long traveling is deep venous thrombosis (DVT). Prolonged bending and compression of veins (i.e., popliteal, soleal veins) on the edges of the seat could be a contributing factor to stasis and thrombosis. Blood concentration, decreased fluid intake, and a dry atmosphere in cabins have been implicated.
Immobility, lower air pressure, and relative hypoxia alter fibrinolytic activity and cause release of vein wall factors, leading to stasis and thrombosis.
The blood clots are formed by DVT it moves from the legs through the bloodstream and into the lungs causing pulmonary embolism, which can also cause death. There was a study done which looked at 878 people who took long flights (at least four hours) during a six-week period.
The participants traveled at least 10 hours during this time, with an average of 39 hours. Overall, 112 developed signs or symptoms of DVT during the three months after travel and received further testing. According to Hughes in "The Lancet: Economy Class Syndrome Back in the News," "Our findings suggest that deep vein thrombosis is a potentially important health problem to many long distance air travelers, including those without recognized risk factors." Nine people were diagnosed with DVT, 1% of travelers.
Six of those had pre-existing risk factors that could have been identified before travel such as a blood clotting disorder or obesity.
The researchers also found that 17% of volunteers wore compression stockings and 31% took aspirin to prevent deep vein thrombosis, both of which decrease the risk of blood clots, Hughes notes. Those traveling longer distances were more inclined to wear the stockings....
