A follow-up study of psychosocial factors and musculoskeletal problems among unskilled female workers with monotonous work.

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal problems are among the most prevalent occupational health problems in industrialised countries and seem to be common among unskilled, female industrial workers. However, cross-sectional studies only reflect the current situation with regard to both exposure and effect, and selection bias may mask work-related musculoskeletal problems so the general assumption is that prospective cohort studies are more valid and informative. The aim with the present study was to follow-up a group of unskilled female workers and determine whether the number of musculoskeletal ailments reported had changed after 3 years on a group and/or on an individual level. The women had earlier participated in a cross-sectional study correlating exposure with different physical and psychosocial factors at work, at home and during leisure time with their reports of musculoskeletal ailments in the neck, shoulders and thoracic spine. METHODS: One hundred and fifty-three women from the original study group of 173 received a mailed questionnaire, including a visual analogue scale (VAS) and a pain drawing. RESULTS: Ninety-three women were included in the final analyses. Some deterioration in general health and, in particular, in psychological health was observed compared with the earlier study but there was less change in the reporting of musculoskeletal ailments. CONCLUSION: Economic decline and its consequences may have had both a direct and an indirect impact on the deterioration in general health but not in musculoskeletal problems of the women still employed.

The effects of a change in work organization upon the work environment and musculoskeletal symptoms among letter carriers.

An organizational change among 82 postal workers was studied with the aim of evaluating the effects on the work environment, work ability, and musculoskeletal complaints. The study was undertaken in 2 suburbs of Stockholm, Sweden. Psychological work demands were estimated to be reduced at the 1-year follow-up but physical work demands had changed very little. In an observation study in a subgroup of older workers, the risk of overexertion at work and musculoskeletal complaints was reduced. In spite of that, most of the older participants (>/=35 years) had unchanged or increased musculoskeletal symptoms. This shows the need for early preventive measures.

The validity of reported musculoskeletal problems. A study of questionnaire answers in relation to diagnosed disorders and perception of pain.

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the validity of answers given in a questionnaire on musculoskeletal pain and conditions by means of a clinical assessment, and to get some understanding of the subject's perception of reported pain. This was performed by using measures of sensitivity and specificity comparing data from the questionnaire with the clinical diagnoses of conditions in the neck, shoulders and thoracic spine. Subjective perception of pain was obtained by the use of visual analogue scale (VAS) and pain drawings. For the combination of neck and shoulders, both sensitivity (95%) and specificity (88%) were high for current pain. The results of the study confirm the validity of the subjective reports of the respondents. A 'pain assessment instrument' including a questionnaire, VAS and pain drawings may be useful to reveal conditions in the neck and shoulders and thoracic spine, common sites of work related musculoskeletal disorders.

Neck and shoulder ailments in a group of female industrial workers with monotonous work.

The aim of the present paper was to study the comprehension of exposure to different physical and psycho-social factors at work, at home and during leisure time and the lifestyle of a group of unskilled female workers, and also their reports of musculoskeletal ailments, especially in the neck, shoulders and thoracic back. Furthermore an evaluation of the relevance of the methods used and the validity of the results are discussed. One hundred and seventy-three women, aged 20-45 years, from, in total, 26 large, medium-sized and small enterprises in three counties in Sweden participated in the study. Each woman answered a questionnaire in the presence of the project leader in a separate room close to her workplace. The questionnaires comprised questions on demographic, work-related and domestic factors; smoking habits, lifestyle and level of physical activity, leisure activities, health status and musculoskeletal problems. The prevalence of musculoskeletal ailments and the smoking habits among the 173 women was compared to a group of 153 women of the same age from the general population. The environmental factors reported as being most disturbing at work were noise, temperature and humidity, and the most frequent adverse physical factors were repetition of movements, precision and uncomfortable posture. The women in the studied group were largely responsible for domestic tasks such as laundry, cleaning and cooking but to a greater extent shared the responsibility for the children with their partners. The highest prevalence of ailments in the study group were in the neck (68%) and shoulders (74%); in the group from the general population these prevalences were 35 and 42%, respectively. The relevance of methods used and the validity of the results were found to be acceptable.

Hand and shoulder ailments among laboratory technicians using modern plunger-operated pipettes.

Laboratory technicians working with plunger-operated pipettes have a monotonous work task loading the arm. A study was performed to evaluate the prevalence of hand and shoulder ailments among laboratory technicians in relation to the 'dose' of pipetting and relation to some psychosocial factors was used to compare a cohort of 128 females employed by university research laboratories with reference data obtained from 25 378 female Swedish state employees in general. The prevalence of hand ailments among the laboratory assistants was found to be twice that among female state employees in general. In the cohort a nested case-control study indicated that an increased risk of hand (OR = 5, 0) and shoulder (OR = 2, 4) ailments was associated with more than 300 h/year pipetting. Suggestions for permissible exposure levels for pipetting are presented.