Carpal tunnel syndrome and computer exposure at work in two large complementary cohorts

Médiouni, Zakia; Bodin, Julie; Dale, Ann Marie; Herquelot, E.; Carton, Matthieu; Leclerc, Annette; Fouquet, Natacha; Dumontier, C.; Roquelaure, Yves; Evanoff, Bradley; Descatha, Alexis

doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2015-008156

Cited by 37 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Studies focused on office workers report mixed results on associations between computer use and musculoskeletal symptoms . Our results indicated that computer use was significantly protective for hand and neck pain, which is consistent with a previous study on two large general population cohorts (France and the United States of America) that observed no association between computer work and new cases of carpal tunnel syndrome . In general population studies, office workers are compared to workers in other job sectors, who are more highly exposed to other physical factors such as repetition, forceful exertions, vibration, and awkward postures.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Musculoskeletal symptoms associated with workplace physical exposures estimated by a job exposure matrix and by self‐report

Yung

Buckner‐Petty²,

Descatha

et al. 2019

American J Industrial Med

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Background: A job-exposure matrix (JEM) is an efficient method to assign physical workplace exposures based on job titles. JEMs offer the possibility of linking work exposures to outcome data from national health registers that contain job titles. The French CONSTANCES JEM was constructed from self-reported physical work exposures of asymptomatic workers participating in a large general population study. We validated this general population JEM by testing its ability to demonstrate exposure-outcome associations for musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) symptoms.Methods: The CONSTANCES JEM was evaluated by assigning exposure estimates to a validation sample of new participants in the CONSTANCES study (final n = 38 730).We used weighted Kappas to compare the level of agreement between JEM-assigned and self-reported exposures across job codes for each of the 27 physical exposure variables. We computed prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals using Poisson regression models adjusted for age and sex for pain at six body locations associated with work exposures estimated via individual self-report and by the JEM.Results: Agreement between individual self-reported and JEM-assigned exposures ranged from κ = 0.16 to 0.71; generally, the level of agreement was fair to good. We observed consistent and significant associations between pain and both self-reported and JEM-assigned exposures at all body locations. Conclusions: The CONSTANCES JEM replicated known associations between physical risk factors and prevalent MSD symptoms. Physical exposure JEMs can reduce some types of information bias, and open new avenues of research in the prevention of MSDs and other health conditions related to workplace physical activities. K E Y W O R D S exposure assessment, hand pain, job-exposure matrix, musculoskeletal disorders, workplace physical exposures Alexis Descatha and Bradley A. Evanoff are co-senior authors.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Musculoskeletal symptoms associated with workplace physical exposures estimated by a job exposure matrix and by self‐report

Yung

Buckner‐Petty²,

Descatha

et al. 2019

American J Industrial Med

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“…In included studies, both duration and input frequency of keyboard and mouse were assessed, whereas for computer and VDT, only the duration of use was assessed. We found nine studies in which the exposure was assessed using self-reports,26–31 33 35 40 while in two studies (the NUDATA and the PROMO study, respectively) both self-reports and software recordings (ie, using dedicated software to record the duration and input frequency of use) of screen work were reported6 7 32 36–39; in one study, the exposure was assessed using a job–exposure matrix 27. No studies on laptop, notebook and/or tablet computer use were identified, despite our aim and search to include such studies in this particular review.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Associations of screen work with neck and upper extremity symptoms: a systematic review with meta-analysis

et al. 2019

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ObjectivesIt has often been suggested that screen work (ie, work on desktop, laptop, notebook or tablet computers) is a risk factor for neck and upper extremity symptoms. However, an up-to-date overview and quantification of evidence are lacking. We aimed to systematically review the association of exposure to screen work with neck and upper extremity symptoms from prospective studies.MethodsAn electronic database search (PubMed, Embase, Cinahl and Scopus) for prospective studies on the association of exposure to screen work and musculoskeletal symptoms was conducted. Studies were synthesised regarding extracted data and risk of bias, and meta-analyses were conducted.ResultsAfter screening 3423 unique references, 19 articles from 12 studies (with 18 538 participants) were included for the current review, with the most recent exposure assessment reported in 2005. Studies described duration and input frequency of screen work (ie, computer, keyboard and mouse use, assessed using self-reports or software recordings) and musculoskeletal symptoms (ie, self-reported neck/shoulder and distal upper extremity symptoms and diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome [CTS]). Although there was overall an increased occurrence of musculoskeletal symptoms with larger exposure to screen work (relative risk: 1.11 [1.03 1.19]), findings were rather inconsistent with weaker (and statistically non-significant) risks when screen work was assessed by software recording (1.05 [0.91 1.21]) compared to with self-report (1.14 [1.03 1.19]).ConclusionsWe found an increased risk of musculoskeletal symptoms with screen work. However, the evidence is heterogeneous, and it is striking that it lacks information from contemporary screen work using laptop, notebook or tablet computers.

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“…However, JEMs can be useful to the study of a wide range of health outcomes. There has been recent interest in applying JEMs to study the effects of workplace physical demands on musculoskeletal disorders, pregnancy outcomes, hernias, and cardiovascular disease . Such job‐related data can be obtained through The Occupational Information Network (O*NET) provided by the U.S. Department of Labor.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficiency of autocoding programs for converting job descriptors into standard occupational classification (SOC) codes

Buckner‐Petty¹,

Dale²,

Evanoff³

2018

American J Industrial Med

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Background Existing datasets often lack job exposure data. Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes can link work exposure data to health outcomes via a Job Exposure Matrix, but manually assigning SOC codes is laborious. We explored the utility of two SOC autocoding programs. Methods We entered industry and occupation descriptions from two existing cohorts into two publicly available SOC autocoding programs. SOC codes were also assigned manually by experienced coders. These SOC codes were then linked to exposures from the Occupational Information Network (O*NET). Results Agreement between the SOC codes produced by autocoding programs and those produced manually was modest at the 6-digit level, and strong at the 2-digit level. Importantly, O*NET exposure values based on SOC code assignment showed strong agreement between manual and autocoded methods. Conclusion Both available autocoding programs can be useful tools for assigning SOC codes, allowing linkage of occupational exposures to data containing free-text occupation descriptors.

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Carpal tunnel syndrome and computer exposure at work in two large complementary cohorts

Cited by 37 publications

References 48 publications

Musculoskeletal symptoms associated with workplace physical exposures estimated by a job exposure matrix and by self‐report

Musculoskeletal symptoms associated with workplace physical exposures estimated by a job exposure matrix and by self‐report

Associations of screen work with neck and upper extremity symptoms: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Efficiency of autocoding programs for converting job descriptors into standard occupational classification (SOC) codes

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