Title
Musculoskeletal symptoms and workload in 12 branches of Dutch agriculture
Author
Hildebrandt, V.H.
TNO Preventie en Gezondheid
Publication year
1995
Abstract
A postal questionnaire survey was carried out in Dutch agriculture to identify high risk branches with respect to musculoskeletal symptoms and workload. The study population comprised a sample 2580 male employees and employers, with a response rate of 49%. A total of 75% of the employees and 71% of the employers reported musculoskeletal symptoms during the past 12 months. Low-back pain was most prevalent (one-year prevalence rate of 51% among employees, 47% among employers), followed by symptoms of the neck-shoulder (one-year prevalence rate of 35% among employees, 30% among employers) and knees (one-year prevalence rate of 22% among employees, 17% among employers). There were marked differences between specific branches in the size and nature of musculoskeletal morbidity as well as in self-reported musculoskeletal workload. In particular protective vegetables growing and arboriculture showed both relatively high rates of symptoms and relatively high exposure levels. The results of this study were used to decide which agricultural branches and workload factors should have priority in the ergonomic interventions that followed.
Subject
Workplace
Agriculture
Musculoskeletal symptoms
Physical workload
Questionnaire
Adult
Employee
Employer
Human
Human experiment
Knee
Low back pain
Male
Musculoskeletal disease
Neck pain
Netherlands
Normal human
Shoulder pain
Symptom
Vegetable
Workload
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TNO identifier
233068
ISSN
0014-0139
Source
Ergonomics, 38 (12), 2576-2587
Document type
article