Mental Workload, Occupational Fatigue and Musculoskeletal Disorders of Forestry Professionals

Abstract

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) comprise one of the most important occupational health issues in forestry professions. The purpose of the study was to examine the association among musculoskeletal disorders, antrhopometric and personal data, mental workload and occupational fatigue in forest professionals in northern Iran by means of the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX), and the Swedish Occupational Fatigue Inventory (SOFI). More than eight out of every ten subjects reported at least one MSD symptom during the past 12 months, with lower back (72.5%), feet and ankles (49%) and neck (41.2%) being the more frequently affected body regions. Similar MSD prevalences were reported for the period of seven days prior to data collection. Both the mental workload (grand mean 73.18±7.54) and occupational fatigue (grand mean 106.20±24.53) achieved high scores. MSD prevalence was found to be correlated with the SOFI score and the NASA-TLX score during the last year and seven days prior to data collection, respectively.Overall, the study results confirm the very demanding nature of the forest professions, which are characterized by high MSD prevalence, increased occupational fatigue and high mental workload. Given the small-scale forestry characteristics in the study area, taking measures such as introducing vocational training and promoting the use of personal protective equipment are some first necessary steps for the local forestry workforce.

Forestry Ergonomics Publications in the Last Decade: A Review

“…Manual work and tools are generally tied to measuring and managing operations in forestry [13,16,59,90] where workload and postural load were assessed. They are also involved in pre-harvesting and harvesting [15], e.g., postural load during manual cultivation and assistance with a wooden stick to help direct the felling; and wood extraction [15,48], e.g., MSD occurrence and workload while sorting small logs and manual loading, respectively.…”

“…Furthermore, a higher slope gradient increased visual activity, indicating that the harvester operator experienced a heavier mental workload [47]. However, a study by Arman et al [48] on tree fellers, skidder drivers, and manual loaders recorded high scores for mental workload using a NASA-TLX questionnaire. Pajek et al [49] in their controlled study stated that there are significant differences in psychophysical load in regard to the clothing systems used by forest workers.…”

The Impact of Body Posture on Heart Rate Strain during Tree Felling

“…The data analysis aimed at the estimation of the relative heart rate (HRR) at work according to Equation (1) [ 37 , 38 ]: where HR work was the average heart rate during work, HR rest was the resting heart rate, and HR max was the maximum heart rate calculated for each subject by subtracting his age from 220. The validity of 220—age has been questioned for containing a degree of error [ 33 , 39 ]; however, it has been widely used in applied situations as is [ 37 , 40 , 41 ].…”

“…Research has shown that tree felling and processing are the most demanding phases of harvesting trees [ 3 , 28 ]. It comes as no surprise that chainsaw operators suffer from high MSD prevalence [ 2 , 15 , 33 , 34 ].…”

Optimizing Forest Harvesting Efficiency: A Comparative Analysis of Small-Sized Logging Crews Using Cable-Grapple Skidders

“…Psychological pressure can affect cognitive abilities (i.e., perception and problem solving) through affecting the workers' mental reserves [34,35] and result in lesser quality of forest operations, both in terms of the produced timber assortments and the environmental impacts of forest operations [36]. Similarly, stressful situations may create adverse working conditions, leading to increased frequencies of accidents and musculoskeletal disorders [37,38].…”