Walker, Anthony, Keene, Toby, Argus, Christos, Driller, Matthew, Guy, Joshua H., and Rattray, Ben (2015) Immune and inflammatory responses of Australian firefighters after repeated exposures to the heat. Ergonomics, 58 (12). pp. 2032-2039.

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Abstract

When firefighters work in hot conditions, altered immune and inflammatory responses may increase the risk of a cardiac event. The present study aimed to establish the time course of such responses. Forty-two urban firefighters completed a repeat work protocol in a heat chamber (1005 degrees C). Changes to leukocytes, platelets, TNF, IL-6, IL-10, LPS and CRP were evaluated immediately post-work and also after 1 and 24h of rest. Increases in core temperatures were associated with significant increases in leukocytes, platelets and TNF directly following work. Further, platelets continued to increase at 1h (+31.2 +/- 31.3x10(9)l, p<0.01) and remained elevated at 24h (+15.9 +/- 19.6x10(9)l, p<0.01). Sustained increases in leukocytes and platelets may increase the risk of cardiac events in firefighters when performing repeat work tasks in the heat. This is particularly relevant during multi-day deployments following natural disasters.

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