Long-Term Effects of Environment on Health and Performance of Antarctic Winter-Over Personnel.

• Main Author: Palinkas, Lawrence A.
• Other Authors: NAVAL HEALTH RESEARCH CENTER SAN DIEGO CA
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1985
• Subjects: Anatomy and Physiology; Medicine and Medical Research; *ENLISTED PERSONNEL; *MORBIDITY; STATIONS; TEMPERATURE; ENVIRONMENTS; HIGH RATE; DEMOGRAPHY; RATES; POPULATION; ERRORS; ANTARCTIC REGIONS; INDICATORS; COLD WEATHER; ALTITUDE; HOSPITALIZATIONS; MEAN; PERSONNEL; ADVERSE CONDITIONS; PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS; WINTER; LONG RANGE(TIME); STATISTICS; RISK; SIZES(DIMENSIONS); NAVAL PERSONNEL; HEALTH; PE61152N; WU6035; Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA165982; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA165982

The object of this study was to determine if the risk to health and well-being of personnel who winter-over in Antarctica is related to the station to which they are assigned. Subjects were 327 enlisted Navy personnel who wintered over between 1963 and 1974. A fifteen-year period from 1965 to 1979 was established for follow-up. Demographic characteristics, total first hospitalizations for unique diagnoses, and performance indicators were examined. Comparisons of these variables were made by each station, by station size (large, small), and by the severity of station environment (based on altitude and mean annual temperature). Comparisons were made of both independent and dependent rates of total first hospitalizations. Dependent rates were based on the total population of enlisted winter-over personnel. Results indicated that there was no relationship between rates of first hospitalization and severity of station environment. When compared with the standard incidence of total first hospitalizations, the personnel assigned to Palmer and personnel at small stations were found to have significantly higher rates than the norm. However, these may reflect Type I statistical errors because of the small sample size. No significant differences were observed on any of the performance indicators in comparisons between stations or by station size and severity of environment. Environment, therefore, appears to have no adverse long-term effect on health and performance. Keywords: Morbidity; Operation Deep Freeze.