A Prospective Study of Musculoskeletal Outcomes Among Manufacturing Workers

Gerr, Fredric; Fethke, Nathan B.; Merlino, Linda; Anton, Dan; Rosecrance, John; Jones, Michael P.; Marcus, Michele; Meyers, Alysha R.

doi:10.1177/0018720813491114

Cited by 83 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 55 publications

(56 reference statements)

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“…Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is one of the most common wrist disorders associated with occupational exposures 1 2. The exact pathogenesis of CTS is unknown but increased pressure on the median nerve by the surrounding tissue in the carpal tunnel plays a role 3.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure–response relationships between movements and postures of the wrist and carpal tunnel syndrome among male and female house painters: a retrospective cohort study

et al. 2016

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure–response relationships between movements and postures of the wrist and carpal tunnel syndrome among male and female house painters: a retrospective cohort study

et al. 2016

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“…Since its development, the HAL and ACGIH ® TLV ® have been used to evaluate upper extremity MSD risk factor exposure in a variety of industries, although most evaluations have been made in manufacturing environments (Dempsey et al, 2005; Franzblau et al, 2005; Garg et al, 2012; Gerr et al, 2013; Kapellusch et al, 2013; Latko et al, 1999). It is typically used to evaluate cyclic tasks in which a well-defined set of work cycles or a series of forceful exertions are repeated on a regular basis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The present study relied on data obtained during a large prospective cohort study that was focused on the relationship between exposures and health outcomes and not necessarily on the interrater reliability of the HAL scale (Gerr et al, 2013). If the a priori research question was only an assessment of inter-rater reliability, then using an ICC measure of reliability, rather than Pearson's correlation, would have been a more robust and appropriate statistical measure.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Inter-rater reliability of cyclic and non-cyclic task assessment using the hand activity level in appliance manufacturing

Paulsen

Schwatka

Gober

et al. 2014

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics

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This study evaluated the inter-rater reliability of the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH®) hand activity level (HAL), an observational ergonomic assessment method used to estimate physical exposure to repetitive exertions during task performance. Video recordings of 858 cyclic and non-cyclic appliance manufacturing tasks were assessed by sixteen pairs of raters using the HAL visual-analog scale. A weighted Pearson Product Moment-Correlation Coefficient was used to evaluate the agreement between the HAL scores recorded by each rater pair, and the mean weighted correlation coefficients for cyclic and non-cyclic tasks were calculated. Results indicated that the HAL is a reliable exposure assessment method for cyclic (r̄-barw = 0.69) and non-cyclic work tasks (r̄-barw = 0.68). When the two reliability scores were compared using a two-sample Student's t-test, no significant difference in reliability (p = 0.63) between these work task categories was found. This study demonstrated that the HAL may be a useful measure of exposure to repetitive exertions during cyclic and non-cyclic tasks. Relevance to industry Exposure to hazardous levels of repetitive action during non-cyclic task completion has traditionally been difficult to assess using simple observational techniques. The present study suggests that ergonomists could use the HAL to reliably and easily evaluate exposures associated with some non-cyclic work tasks.

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“…The participation rate was 52%. A brief description of the methods used to conduct the Iowa Consortium Study is provided later, and a detailed description of the methods is provided elsewhere (Gerr et al, 2014). All employees performing production work at a large appliance manufacturing facility were eligible to participate in the Iowa Consortium Study.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of Alternate Category Structures for the Strain Index

Meyers

Gerr²,

Fethke

2013

Hum Factors

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Objective The purpose of this study was to develop alternative Strain Index risk classification categories. Background Strain Index scores are usually categorized into four Strain Index “risk categories.” The “original” risk categories were developed in the meat-packing industry and may not be fully applicable to other industries. Method Daily Strain Index scores were estimated among 276 manufacturing workers participating in a cohort study of occupational risk factors for hand–arm musculoskeletal symptoms. Each score was categorized using the original method and a new method based on quartiles of Strain Index score values among symptomatic participants. Models examining associations between original Strain Index risk categories and incident hand–arm symptoms were compared to models examining associations between the alternative Strain Index risk categories and incident hand–arm symptoms. Results Compared to the respective referent categories, a twofold or greater increase in the risk of incident hand–arm symptoms was observed for the highest original Strain Index risk category (HR = 2.06, 95% CI = [1.08–3.92]) and for the second highest alternate Strain Index risk exposure category (HR = 2.21, 95% CI = [1.26–3.85]). Although significant associations between Strain Index risk category and incident hand–arm symptoms were observed for both Strain Index categorization methods, model fit statistics favored the alternate approach. Conclusion Results from this study suggests that the Strain Index risk category structure may need to be tailored to specific populations. Application If verified, results from this study provide a better way to identify hazardous manufacturing jobs and target them for exposure reduction.

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A Prospective Study of Musculoskeletal Outcomes Among Manufacturing Workers

Abstract: The results of this study provide evidence that physical exposures in the workplace contribute to musculoskeletal disorder incidence. Musculoskeletal disorder prevention efforts should include mitigation of these occupational risk factors.

Cited by 83 publications

References 55 publications

Exposure–response relationships between movements and postures of the wrist and carpal tunnel syndrome among male and female house painters: a retrospective cohort study

Exposure–response relationships between movements and postures of the wrist and carpal tunnel syndrome among male and female house painters: a retrospective cohort study

Inter-rater reliability of cyclic and non-cyclic task assessment using the hand activity level in appliance manufacturing

Evaluation of Alternate Category Structures for the Strain Index

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