[Accumulated years of potential productive life lost due industrial accidents in Petróleos Mexicanos]. / Años acumulados de vida productiva potencial perdidos por accidentes de trabajo en Petróleos Mexicanos.

OBJECTIVE: There are different indicators to give priority to health problems within the area of occupational health; we propose the calculation of accumulated years of potential productive life lost (AYPPLL) to estimate the loss of material and human resources due to work accidents. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 8 638 work accidents were analyzed using this method. Independent variables were: sex, age, place and type of accident, subject's income and work conditions. The dependent variable was permanent disability. RESULTS: Subjects who had some kind of permanent damage were 19.5%; the total number of AYPPLL was 5611, with an average of 3.2 YPPLL per accident. Variables associated with the highest AYPPLL were the sociodemographic variables, male sex, lowest income levels, temporary work contracts and injuries of the hand and wrist. CONCLUSIONS: The AYPPLL method was found to be a valuable indicator of the safety and hygiene of the worksite and a useful tool for planning and evaluating work accident programs.