Musculoskeletal Disorders Symptoms among Taiwanese Bakery Workers

Abstract

In this study, the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) was administered to a valid sample of 81 Taiwanese bakery workers to explore their discomfort or symptoms of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and identify the risk factors. Wrist postures were also examined during 3 typical dough operations (kneading, rolling, and rounding) by using an electrogoniometer. The prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort in any part of the body in the past year among the respondents was 93.0%, with the highest prevalence of 66.3% and 51.8% in the hands/wrists (right and left), followed by the prevalence of 50.6% and 45.8% in the shoulders (right and left) and the lower back (48.2%), respectively. The results also revealed that during the 3 dough processing operations, the workers’ wrist movements in specific operations were close to the recommended limits suggested in previous studies, especially the ulnar deviation and palm flexion of the right wrist during dough kneading and the radial deviation of the left wrist during dough rolling and rounding. The study findings can be used to explain why the bakers self-report a high proportion of wrist and shoulder disorders and can also serve as a reference for task rearrangement and redesign.

Gender differences and site-specific incident risks of musculoskeletal disorders among 224 506 workers in the food and beverage service industry in Taiwan: A 15-year Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study

“…Regarding bakers, their work incudes manual dough handling, prolonged standing, and high repetitiveness, causing numerous MSDs especially hand/wrist, shoulder, and back. 30,31 The strengths of this study were the long study period (15 years), inclusion of all MSDs and two other disease groups associated with work repetitiveness and overexertion, estimation of SIRs using the general population as a reference, and presentation of sub-industrial-specific and cooking-certificate-type-specific SIRs. These aspects were seldom investigated in previous studies, and they allowed for a comprehensive understanding of FBSI-related MSDs.…”

Hematological parameters in a population of male bakers exposed to high heat work environment

“…Bakers are additionally at high risk of developing musculoskeletal illnesses from repetitive movements during their daily work, which involves handling dough in awkward postures, heavy lifting, and long shift-working hours [9][10][11][12].…”

Physiological and biochemical parameters among a population of bakers exposed to environmental heat

“…These disorders are common among bakers as they handle dough, stand for prolonged periods next to a hot oven, bend repeatedly to insert heavy trays into the hot oven, lift heavy items, work for long hours, and do shift work. These findings have been reported in several different studies [9][10][11][12]. Many workers exposed to high environmental temperatures are at risk of developing heat strain leading to physi-Although there is a significant body of research on heat exposure in the workplace, there is insufficient information regarding the prevalence of heat disorders among bakers in terms of the particular physiological and biochemical responses they experience because of exposure to high environmental temperatures.…”