Longitudinal evidence for the association between work-related physical exposures and neck and/or shoulder complaints: a systematic review

Abstract

This analysis of longitudinal studies allowed for new evidence with regard to four cause-effect chains between physical exposures at work and the development of shoulder, neck and neck/shoulder complaints. As outcome variables varied greatly among the included studies, harmonization in studies on musculoskeletal research is desirable.

Time course of neck-shoulder pain among workers: A longitudinal latent class growth analysis

“…This underlines the importance of interventions targeting high physical workload to prevent chronic NSP. Similar findings have been reported in prospective studies on associations between physical work exposures and NSP (5). However, the use of selfreported measurements of both physical strain at work and NSP is a limitation as it could have introduced reporting bias.…”

“…Overall, the high occurrence of NSP may partly be explained by the large proportion (83%) of blue-collar workers in the present study (3). The high risk of NSP among blue-collar workers is presumed to be determined by a combination of occupational, socioeconomic and individual factors (5,6). The trajectory classes with severe persistent and strong fluctuating NSP may be important as target groups for future workplace interventions; particularly considering that they showed pronounced interference of pain in physical and social activities.…”

“…Further, the prediction models are limited to a selection of personal, occupational and pain-related factors, while other potential prognostic factors were not studied. Thus, further studies should address specific biomechanical factors at work as well as psychosocial working conditions which are presumed to affect the course of NSP (5,6).…”

Chronic Musculoskeletal Disorders as Risk Factors for Reduced Work Ability in Younger and Ageing Workers

“…The main ones are physical: high repeatability of work tasks, prolonged awkward posture at work, considerable force developed at work and local vibration [8,9,10]. The risk for musculoskeletal pain also rises under conditions of psychosocial stress, e.g., time pressure, low level of job satisfaction, lack of control with high requirements, and insufficient social support.…”

Patterns of biomechanical demands are associated with musculoskeletal pain in the beginning of professional life: a population-based study

“…Among those, physical factors such as heavy loads, bending or twisting, vibrations and awkward postures are the strongest predictors of multisite musculoskeletal pain, probably due to the direct mechanical tissue overload induced on joints (7)(8)(9).…”