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Wåhlin C.1,2, Ghafouri B.3, Stigmar K.4,5, Nyqvist F.1, Rolander B.6,7
1Linköping University Hospital, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Linköping, Sweden, 2Karolinska Institutet, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research, Institute for Environmental Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden, 3Linköping University, Pain and Rehabilitation Centre, and Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Linköping, Sweden, 4Lund University, Physiotherapy, Department of Health Sciences, Lund, Sweden, 5Region Skåne, Epidemiology and Register Centre South, Lund, Sweden, 6Jönköping County Council, Futurum, Academy for Health and Care, Jönköping, Sweden, 7Jönköping University, Department of Behavioral Science and Social Work, School of Health Sciences, Jönköping, Sweden
Background: In daily practice, both physiotherapists and ergonomists, treat and provide interventions for workers with neck pain. It is recommended in clinical guidelines that there should be an increased focus on occupational factors analyzing work conditions of importance for work-related disorders. Research focusing on neck pain among blue color workers like fork lift truck operators is lacking.
Purpose: The aim was to describe prevalence of neck pain, perceived health, and work load among fork lift truck operators and their need for adjustments at work. A further aim was to compare workers with pain (WWP) to workers with no neck pain (WNP) with regard to reported work conditions, also to identify potential risk factors for neck pain.
Methods: A cross-sectional cohort study was conducted 2014 including 130 fork lift truck operators at a high-level warehouse in Sweden (39% response rate). A questionnaire was sent to the workers comprising questions about neck and shoulder pain, health, work ability, work conditions, work demands and, need for adjustments at work. Risk factors for neck pain were calculated in a regression model adjusted for age.
Results: The study shows that 48% of the workers (72 % men) had experienced neck pain during the last year. Mean age was 39.9 years (SD: 9.8). Mean intensity of neck pain during the latest seven days was 5.02 on an 11-item scale. WWPs (n=62) had more awkward working postures (neck: extended p 0.03, lateral flexion p 0.04 and/or rotated p 0.03) and monotonous work (p 0.001) than WNPs (n=68). Shoulder pain was more common among WWPs (64% versus 36% for WNP, p 0.001). WWPs differed from WNPs concerning several self-reported items; higher work stress (p 0.001), higher physical work load (14.11 on a 20-item scale versus 13.02, p 0.03); lower work ability (6.8 on a 11-item scale versus 7.78, p 0.01); lower work satisfaction (11 degree scale 6.77 versus 7.72, p=0.005); less freedom to decide how to perform their work (p 0.05) and lower self-reported health (p=0.006). Employees reported need for several workplace interventions and adjustments classified into 4 groups: 1) ergonomics, adjustment of work tasks, equipment 2) Organizational; better staffing, improvement of work schedule, rotation of work tasks, 3) Productivity and, 4) Improve work place conditions. The regression model reveals that less degrees of freedom at work OR: 3.76 (CI:1.44-9.77), was associated with a significant higher risk of having neck pain. Work postures, heavy work load or reporting stress caused by high work pace was not significantly associated.
Conclusion(s): It is important to explore causes contributing to neck pain among fork lift truck operators. The study shows that nearly half of the workers reported having neck pain. Among these blue color workers, neck pain is associated with work-related factors. There are several suggested adjustments at work that can improve working conditions.
Implications: We recommend that physiotherapists clinical reasoning approach include questions about work conditions, physical and mental demands at work. One way to approach the problem can be to increase collaboration between clinical physiotherapists, ergonomists, and having a closer contact with the work place.
Funding acknowledgements: This work was funded by Medical Research Council of Southeast Sweden (FORSS).
Topic: Occupational health & ergonomics
Ethics approval: The study was approved by the Regional Ethical Board at Linköping University, Sweden (Dnr: 2013/418-31).
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
