Objetivo: descrever a prevalência de problemas crônicos de coluna e de distúrbios osteomusculares relacionados ao trabalho (DORT) autorreferidos em adultos brasileiros, segundo variáveis sociodemográficas.

The offshore oil industry is characterized by complex systems in relation to technology and organization of work. Working conditions are hazardous, resulting in accidents and even occasional full-scale catastrophes. This article is the result of a study on work-related accidents in the offshore platforms in the Campos Basin, Rio de Janeiro State. The primary objective was to provide technical back-up for both workers' representative organizations and public authorities. As a methodology, we attempt to go beyond the immediate causes of accidents and emphasize underlying causes related to organizational and managerial aspects. The sources were used in such a way as to permit classification in relation to the type of incident, technological system, operation, and immediate and underlying causes. The results show the aggravation of safety conditions and the immediate need for public authorities and the offshore oil industry in Brazil to change the methods used to investigate accidents in order to identify the main causes in the organizational and managerial structure of companies.

The study results showed that there is a predominance of accidents in lower hierarchy workers, and these accidents occur mainly during maintenance activities. There is a need to improve the company's accident reporting system and accident investigation procedures.

Accidents in the chemical industry can have serious consequences for workers, communities, and the environment and are thus highly relevant to public health. This article is the result of an occupational surveillance project involving several public institutions. We analyze 800 work-related accidents that resulted in injuries, environmental damage, or loss of production in 1997 in an oil refinery located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The methodology was based on managerial and organizational approaches to accident investigation, with the European Union reporting system as the reference. The results highlight various limitations in the process of reporting and investigating accidents, as well as a certain hierarchy of accidents, with more attention given to accidents involving loss of production and less to those resulting in injuries, particularly among outsourced workers.

The growing use of Information and Communications Technology on everyday activities shows the need to incorporate them to educational activities as well. However, in order to deal with the lack of knowledge and the resistance of some educators, it is important not only providing training, but also supervising the pedagogical activities which take place in the classrooms. This practice helps professors to feel confident and stimulated to review the teaching and learning context in which they take part. Resumo. O crescente uso das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação emdiversas atividades cotidianas evidencia a necessidade de incorporá-las também às atividades educacionais. Entretanto, para vencer a falta de conhecimento e a resistência de alguns professores, faz-se necessário investir não apenas em formações, mas também no acompanhamento das atividades pedagógicas realizadas em sala de aula. Esse suporte é muito importante para que os docentes se sintam seguros e motivados a rever o contexto de ensino e aprendizagem no qual estão inseridos.