The influence of work-related exposures on the prognosis of neck/shoulder pain

Abstract

To determine associations between work-related exposures and the prognosis of self-reported neck/ shoulder pain. This prospective cohort study was based on 803 working subjects who reported neck/shoulder pain at baseline. The proportion of subjects who 5-6 years later were symptom-free was calculated. Data concerning workrelated biomechanical, psychosocial, and organizational exposures were collected at baseline. The Cox regression analyses were used to calculate the relative chances (RC) of being symptom-free at the end of the study for single exposures, and also for up to three simultaneous workrelated exposures. Adjustments were made for sex and age. Only 36% of the subjects were symptom-free 5-6 years later. The relative chance for being symptom-free at the end of the study was 1.32 (95% CI = 0.99-1.74) for subjects who were exposed to sitting ‡75% of the working time and 1.53 (95% CI = 1.02-2.29) for subjects who were exposed to job strain, i.e., the combination of high demands and low decision latitude. The relative chance of being symptom-free at the end of the study was 0.61 (95% CI = 0.40-0.94) for subjects with at least two out of three simultaneous biomechanical exposures at work; manual handling, working with the hands above shoulder level, and working with vibrating tools. In a heterogeneous population with moderate nonspecific neck/shoulder pain, sedentary work enhanced the chance of being symptomfree 5-6 years later, whereas simultaneous exposures to at least two of manual handling, working with hands above shoulder level and working with vibrating tools were associated with a lower chance of being symptom-free at the end of the study. This could imply that subjects with neck/shoulder pain should avoid such simultaneous exposures.

Follow‐up of neck and shoulder pain among sewing machine operators: The Los Angeles garment study

“…This study also reported that poor overall improvement in 1 year of follow-up was related to holding a manual job, experiencing high level of physical strain at work, and reporting high level of pain at baseline. Another longitudinal study suggested that subjects with at least two out of three biomechanical strains at work such as push/pull activities, working with the hands above shoulder level, and working with vibrating tools, experienced poorer neck or shoulder pain than the general working population [Grooten et al, 2007]. These findings support our own results that perceived high physical workload and overtime work (working more than 5 days per week) are associated with poorer neck and shoulder pain over time.…”

The Epidemiology of Shoulder Pain: A Narrative Review of the Literature

“…[57] These findings were also confirmed by Malchaire et al who found a correlation between forceful hand and wrist work on the development of shoulder pain. [58] A recent prospective cohort study conducted by Grooten et al in 2007 demonstrated that three simultaneous work-related exposures influenced the development of shoulder pain; these included manual handling (physical load), working with the hands above shoulder level, and working with vibrating tools. [59] The presence of any of these three variables also influenced the long-term prognosis of workers with shoulder pain.…”

Effects of lift-assist device on trunk and shoulder kinematics

“…A few previous studies have reported that approximately 50% of masonry/bricklayers complain of shoulder injuries due to repetitive handling of construction bricks/blocks [9 -11]. Several previous studies have already shown that physically demanding tasks such as heavy lifting, working at or above shoulder level, and repetitive movements are associated with low back pain [12][13][14][15][16][17][18] and shoulder pain [19][20][21][22][23].…”