Health complaints and working conditions experienced in relation to work and age.

Broersen, J.P.J.; Zwart, B. C. H. de; Dijk, F. J. H. van; Meijman, Theo F.; Veldhoven, M.J.P.M. van

doi:10.1136/oem.53.1.51

Cited by 35 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…These ®ndings are consistent with those found in other studies among employees in the Netherlands [2,14,37] and abroad [22,33]. For several complaints, a¯attening or even decrease in PRs was observed in the older age groups.…”

Section: Age Dierencessupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Over the years, several cross-sectional studies on musculoskeletal complaints have reported a sharp increase in prevalence rates with advancing age for both male and female workers [2,14]. It can be hypothesized that several age-related factors are partially responsible for this age-eect.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…4 Prevalence rates (PRs) of complaints of the lower extremities, strati®ed for age and type of work demands for male (A) and female (B) employees study with respect to age and gender dierences were found to show correspondence with similar large scale surveys in the Netherlands [2,14] and abroad [22,35].…”

Section: Subjects and Questionnaire Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Musculoskeletal complaints in the Netherlands in relation to age, gender and physically demanding work

Zwart

Broersen²,

Frings‐Dresen³

et al. 1997

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

109

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Objectives: This cross-sectional study was performed in order to elucidate the relationship of musculoskeletal complaints with age, gender and physically demanding work in the Netherlands. Methods: Questionnaire data of male (n 36 756) and female (n 7730) employees, gathered as part of periodical occupational health surveys among active workers in the Netherlands, were strati®ed for age, gender, and type of work demands. For each strati®ed group prevalence rates (PR) were calculated for complaints of the back, neck, upper and lower extremities. Moreover, prevalence rate dierences (PRD) were estimated as an absolute eect measure of exposure to various types of physical work demands, with active employees in mentally demanding work acting as a reference population. Results: Musculoskeletal complaints among workers in physically demanding occupations were found to increase with age for both sexes. For several complaints, substantially higher rates were reported for women than for men, with a relatively high number of complaints observed among the older female workers (around 40% for complaints of back, upper and lower extremities). Signi®cant PRDs were present in particular for employees in heavy physically demanding occupations and in jobs with mixed mental and physical work demands. Conclusions: With the ageing of the workforce in mind, these ®ndings stress the need for implementation of preventive measures. Special attention towards the susceptible group of female employees, the elderly age groups in particular, seems justi®ed. In order to clarify the combined eects of age and physical work demands on musculoskeletal complaints, additional studies are required.

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Section: Age Dierencessupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Musculoskeletal complaints in the Netherlands in relation to age, gender and physically demanding work

Zwart

Broersen²,

Frings‐Dresen³

et al. 1997

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

109

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For example, in terms of functional capacities, the knee extensors have been observed to lose strength in seniors and tendon extensive properties is known to decrease with age (Kubo et al 2007, Viitasalo et al 1985. Older employees also produce less muscular force than younger ones (Mathiowetz et al 1985, De Zwart et al 1995, Broersen et al 1996, Reilly et al 1997, Ilmarinen 1997, Robertson and Tracy 1998, Ilmarinen 2001, Macaluso and De Vito 2004. These differences could be due to several factors: sarcopenia, changes in excitation-contraction coupling, modifications to the tendons and bones, and changes in nerve control (Macaluso andDe Vito 2004, Narici andMaffulli 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motor adaptation capacity as a function of age in carrying out a repetitive assembly task at imposed work paces

Gilles¹,

Guélin²,

Desbrosses³

et al. 2017

Applied Ergonomics

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. Motor adaptation capacity as a function of age in carrying out a repetitive assembly task at imposed work paces. Applied Ergonomics, Elsevier, 2017, 64, pp.47-55. 10 AbstractThe working population is getting older. Workers must adapt to changing conditions to respond to the efforts required by the tasks they have to perform. In this laboratory-based study, we investigated the capacities of motor adaptation as a function of age and work pace. Two phases were identified in the task performed: a collection phase, involving dominant use of the lower limbs; and an assembly phase, involving bi-manual motor skills. Results showed that senior workers were mainly limited during the collection phase, whereas they had less difficulty completing the assembly phase. However, senior workers did increase the vertical force applied while assembling parts, whatever the work pace. In younger and middle-aged subjects, vertical force was increased only for the faster pace. Older workers could adapt to perform repetitive tasks under different time constraints, but adaptation required greater effort than for younger workers. These results point towards a higher risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders among seniors.

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“…The self-administered questionnaire, that has been used for almost three decades in POHS (Weel et al 2000) and in several epidemiological studies (Broersen et al 1996;De Zwart et al 1997a,b;1997c), included 55 items about subjective work demands and working conditions and 117 items about subjective health complaints. For the analysis, data were selected from questions referring to current job title, age, gender, civil status, and ®nally complaints of the upper extremities.…”

Section: Questionnaire Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender differences in upper extremity musculoskeletal complaints in the working population

Zwart¹,

Frings‐Dresen²,

Kilbom

2000

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

123

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Objectives: This study analysed the association between gender and upper extremity musculoskeletal complaints, among the general working population and in various occupational groups. The hypothesis was tested whether the higher risk for women in the general working population for these complaints could partly be explained by dierences in the distribution of men and women in occupations with dierent risks for the onset of upper extremity musculoskeletal complaints. Methods: The data for this study came from cross-sectional questionnaire data from 16,874 employees categorised in 21 dierent occupational classes. Associations between gender and complaints of the upper extremities were analysed for the total study sample and for each occupational class separately. An adjustment was made for the variable`occupational class' in the ®nal model in order to study the impact of occupational gender segregation on gender dierences in upper extremity complaints in the working population. Results: In the total study sample, signi®cantly higher risks of complaints of the neck, shoulder, elbow, and wrist among the women were observed. Within many occupational classes, women reported signi®cantly higher risks than did men, in particular for complaints of the neck and shoulder. Adjustment for occupational class showed increased risks for female workers for complaints of the neck, shoulder, elbow, and wrist, hence, rejecting our hypothesis on occupational gender segregation as an explanation for the higher risks for upper extremity complaints among women in the general working population. Conclusions: This study con®rmed the presence of gender dierences in upper extremity musculoskeletal complaints among the working population and in many occupational classes, with female workers having the higher risk. The results, however, do not lend support to a dierential occupational exposure theory as an explanation for the higher risks for these complaints among women in the general working population. Careful consideration of gender in¯uence in ergonomic epidemiological studies is recommended.

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Health complaints and working conditions experienced in relation to work and age.

Cited by 35 publications

References 6 publications

Musculoskeletal complaints in the Netherlands in relation to age, gender and physically demanding work

Musculoskeletal complaints in the Netherlands in relation to age, gender and physically demanding work

Motor adaptation capacity as a function of age in carrying out a repetitive assembly task at imposed work paces

Gender differences in upper extremity musculoskeletal complaints in the working population

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