The Frequency of Diseases within the Locomotor System Compared to Occupational Diseases of Salt Miners

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of locomotor system diseases in salt miners compared with that of other occupational diseases. Methods: An analysis of diseases reported by salt miners working at different mining levels was carried out. All miners were asked about back pain in the past five years. The Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Scale-Polish Version (OLBPDS-PL) and Neck Disability Index-Polish questionnaire Version (NDI-PL) were used to measure the functional disability of the lumbar and cervical spine. In contrast, the severity of low back pain was assessed using a 10 mm visual analog scale (VAS). In all, 62 miners were included in the study. Results: The most common diseases of salt miners are locomotor diseases involving the lumbar spine. The study showed a significant correlation between the occurrence of pain changes in the thoracic spine and the extraction level (p < 0.05). The extraction level also correlates with the reported level of pain in the thoracic spine (p < 0.05). The incidence of diseases such as hypertension and diabetes depended mainly on the age and weight of the subjects (p < 0.05). Hearing loss depended on the age of respondents and years of work in the mine (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Due to significant problems of miners in the field of the motor system, the list of occupational diseases in Poland, specified in the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 30 June 2009 on occupational diseases (Journal of Laws No. 105, item 869) should be extended for example, to diseases affecting the spine. As there are no articles on the health of salt miners, further research should focus on complementing this knowledge to guide interventions to reduce the risk of chronic and occupational diseases. Extensive research is needed, including ergonomic measurements, to verify our results for the Polish salt mining industry.