Should studies of risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders be stratified by gender? Lessons from the 1998 Québec Health and Social Survey

Messing, Karen; Stock, Susan

doi:10.5271/sjweh.1310

Cited by 131 publications

(76 citation statements)

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“…Exposures outside of work such as caring for children and home demands increase the risk of MSK symptoms at work, as well as work absences and work-related disability for women and these non-work exposures are not found to be risk factors for men [McDonough, 1997;Messing et al, 2009;Sandmark, 2009]. This pattern of findings is consistent with role-strain theory which suggests that the increased and conflicting roles of household responsibilities, caregiving, and paid employment have a detrimental effect on women's health [McDonough, 1997].…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…More recently, women in office settings reported more upper extremity complaints than men [Karlqvist et al, 2002;Janwantanakul et al, 2008]. Also lower extremity MSK complaints are higher among women as well [Messing et al, 2008;Messing et al, 2009]. However, less consistent is research examining back complaints, where some studies indicate increased prevalence for women [Krause et al, 1997;de Zwart et al, 1997], while others report increased prevalence for men [Leino-Arjas, 1998;Hooftman et al, 2009].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…For example, women completing tasks that required awkward arm postures were at higher risk for neck and shoulder symptoms than men performing similar tasks [Hooftman et al, 2004]. Also, Hooftman and colleagues have found that men were more vulnerable to the effect of lifting than women doing the same activity [Hooftman et al, 2009].Exposures outside of work such as caring for children and home demands increase the risk of MSK symptoms at work, as well as work absences and work-related disability for women and these non-work exposures are not found to be risk factors for men [McDonough, 1997;Messing et al, 2009;Sandmark, 2009]. This pattern of findings is consistent with role-strain theory which suggests that the increased and conflicting roles of household responsibilities, caregiving, and paid employment have a detrimental effect on women's health [McDonough, 1997].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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The demographic and contextual correlates of work‐related repetitive strain injuries among canadian men and women

Breslin

Ibrahim

Smith

et al. 2013

American J Industrial Med

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Background The study sought to identify gender differences in work-related repetitive strain injuries (RSI), as well as examine the degree to which non-work factors such as family roles interact with gender to modify RSI risk. Another aim is to examine whether there are potential provincial differences in work-related RSI risk. Methods The 2003/2005 Canadian Community Health Survey included over 89,000 respondents who reported working in the past 12 months. Separate multi-level models for men and women were used to identify the correlates of work-related RSIs. Results Women reported sustaining more work-related RSIs than men. Also, having one or more children in the household was associated with lower work-related RSI risk for females. Both men and women in British Columbia reported higher work-related RSI rates than in Ontario. Conclusions Gender contributes to RSI risk in multiple and diverse ways based on labor market segregation, non-work exposures, and possibly biological vulnerability, which suggests more tailored interventions. Also, the provincial differences indicate that monitoring and surveillance of work injury across jurisdictions can assist in province-wide prevention and occupational health and safety evaluation. Am. J. Ind. Med. 56:1180-1189, 2013. ß 2013 KEY WORDS: gender differences; occupational health and safety; occupational injury; geographic; risk factors INTRODUCTIONWomen's participation in work has increased markedly over the last few decades. Currently, Canadian women made up 47% of total employment numbers [Labour Force Survey, 2012]. However, gender segregation in jobs continues to occur in the Canadian labor market [Chung et al., 2000]. For example, when one compares the top ten most common occupations for men and women, only "retail clerk" position appears in both lists [Messing and Stellman, 2006].Certain types of work-related musculoskeletal (MSK) and repetitive strain injury (RSI) symptoms are reported more frequently by working women than men in industrialized countries. For instance, an early review of 21 studies AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE 56:1180-1189 (2013 ß 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.examining neck and shoulder complaints by occupation and gender showed women having an increased prevalence compared to men [Hagberg and Wegman, 1987]. More recently, women in office settings reported more upper extremity complaints than men [Karlqvist et al., 2002;Janwantanakul et al., 2008]. Also lower extremity MSK complaints are higher among women as well [Messing et al., 2008;Messing et al., 2009]. However, less consistent is research examining back complaints, where some studies indicate increased prevalence for women [Krause et al., 1997;de Zwart et al., 1997], while others report increased prevalence for men [Leino-Arjas, 1998;Hooftman et al., 2009].Supporting the notion that work exposures are a major contributing factor for gender differences, some studies examining exposure differences tend to find that MSK complaints are not significantly different when comparing men ...

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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The demographic and contextual correlates of work‐related repetitive strain injuries among canadian men and women

Breslin

Ibrahim

Smith

et al. 2013

American J Industrial Med

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“…As work tasks and the type of work injuries reported to compensation agencies differ for men and women 20,21) , all analyses were stratified by gender. We conducted three separate sex-stratified regression analyses.…”

Section: Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relationship between Age and Work Injury in British Columbia: Examining Differences across Time and Nature of Injury

Smith

Bielecky

Mustard

et al. 2013

Journal of Occupational Health

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The Relationship between Age and Work Injury in British Columbia: Examining Differences across Time and Nature of Injury: Peter SMITH, et al. Institute for Work and Health, Canada— Objective The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between age and the lost‐time workers' compensation claims in British Columbia, Canada, over three time periods (1997−98, 2001−02 and 2005−06). We examined if the relationship between age and risk of lost‐time claims is consistent over time and for different nature of injury categories. Methods Secondary analyses of lost‐time workers' compensation claims combined with estimates of person‐years of exposure generated from the Canadian Labour Force Survey were performed. Analyses examined the relationship between age and claim risk using sex‐stratified regression models, adjusting for time period, occupational characteristics and whether the claimant was employed in the goods or service industry. Multiplicative interaction terms were used to examine if the relationship between age and lost‐time claim risk changed over time. Seven separate regression models were generated to explore the variation in the effect of age across nature of injury groups. Results We observed important differences in the relationship between age and risk of injury depending on the nature of injury examined. A negative relationship was observed between age and lost‐time claims for open wounds, while a positive relationship was observed for traumatic injuries to bones, nerves and the spinal cord. We found no evidence that the relationship between age and risk of lost‐time claims changed over time periods. Conclusions The association between age and risk of lost‐time claims depends on the nature of injury under investigation. We found no evidence that the relationship between age and overall lost‐time claim risk has changed over time in British Columbia.

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“…Work-related exposures are a determinant of these ailments (Hales and Bernard 1996) and are associated with upper-extremity (Bernard 1997, Ariens et al 2000, Messing et al 2009), back (Shipp et al 2009, CostaBlack et al 2010 and upper-and lower-limb disorders (Ranney et al 1995, Punnett andHerbert 2000). Work activities that involve heavy lifting, awkward postures, bending, twisting or stooping, prolonged sitting or standing and repetitive motions may contribute to the development of these problems (Ariens et al 2000, National Research Council 2001, Punnett and Wegman 2004.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hard work at home: musculoskeletal pain among female homemakers

2011

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This study explores the relationship between housework and musculoskeletal symptoms among homemakers, adjusting for social, demographic and economic factors. A cross-sectional survey was carried out on 435 women from Nabaa, a low-income community in Lebanon. In total, 77% of women reported having musculoskeletal pain in the previous 12 months. Both psychosocial and physical factors showed significant associations with musculoskeletal symptoms. Related psychosocial factors included feelings of stress associated with homemaking and homemakers' number of children and self-rated health. The physical factors associated with musculoskeletal pain were feeling fatigued at the end of a housework day, working long hours and working in awkward postures or frequently engaging in repetitive hand movements. Ergonomic stressors were also associated with pain in the back and upper and lower extremities. Women from this community engage in a large number of hours of housework that, alongside other factors, were associated with high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain.Practitioner Summary: This study contributes to the literature by studying women's housework activities in association with musculoskeletal pain. The role of women in homemaking activities is explored together with physical exposures leading to reported symptoms. This study adds a perspective of a Middle Eastern context to the literature of women's musculoskeletal health.

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Should studies of risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders be stratified by gender? Lessons from the 1998 Québec Health and Social Survey

Cited by 131 publications

References 42 publications

The demographic and contextual correlates of work‐related repetitive strain injuries among canadian men and women

The demographic and contextual correlates of work‐related repetitive strain injuries among canadian men and women

The Relationship between Age and Work Injury in British Columbia: Examining Differences across Time and Nature of Injury

Hard work at home: musculoskeletal pain among female homemakers

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