Skip to main content
Log in

Risk for low back pain from different frequencies, load mass and trunk postures of lifting and carrying among female healthcare workers

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To investigate the risk of developing non-chronic and chronic low back pain (LBP) from frequency, load mass and trunk postures of occupational lifting and carrying among female healthcare workers.

Methods

A total of 9,847 workers in eldercare answered a questionnaire about occupational lifting and carrying frequency (rarely, occasionally and frequently), load mass (low: 1–7 kg, moderate: 8–30 kg and heavy: >30 kg), trunk posture (upright or forward bent back), and days with LBP in 2005. The odds ratio (OR) for developing non-chronic (1–30 days the last 12 months) and chronic (>30 days the last 12 months) LBP reported in 2006 from these characteristics of occupational lifting and carrying was investigated with multi-adjusted logistic regressions among female healthcare workers without LBP in 2005 (n = 1,612).

Results

Frequently lifting and carrying low load mass with forward bent back doubled the risk for developing chronic LBP (OR: 2.14; 95 % CI: 1.02–4.50). Occasionally and frequently lifting or carrying of any load mass with upright back did not increase the risk for chronic LBP. Lifting and carrying did not increase the risk for non-chronic LBP.

Conclusions

Preventive initiatives for LBP among healthcare workers ought to pay attention to frequent lifting and carrying of low load mass with forward bent back.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andersen JH, Haahr JP, Frost P (2011) Details on the association between heavy lifting and low back pain. Spine J 11:690–691

    Google Scholar 

  • Da Costa BR, Vieira ER (2010) Risk factors for work-related musculoskeletal disorders: a systematic review of recent longitudinal studies. Am J Ind Med 53:285–323

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagen KB, Thune O (1998) Work incapacity from low back pain in the general population. Spine 23:2091–2095

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Harkness EF, Macfarlane GJ, Nahit ES, Silman AJ, McBeth J (2003) Risk factors for new-onset low back pain amongst cohorts of newly employed workers. Rheumatology 42:959–968

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hollmann S, Klimmer F, Schmidt KH, Kylian H (1999) Validation of a questionnaire for assessing physical work load. Scand J Work Environ Health 25:105–114

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hoogendoorn WE, van Poppel MNM, Bongers PM, Koes BW, Bouter LM (1999) Physical load during work and leisure time as risk factors for back pain. Scand J Work Environ Health 25:387–403

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hoogendoorn WE, Bongers PM, De Vet HCW, Ariens GAM, van Mechelen W, Bouter LM (2002) High physical work load and low job satisfaction increase the risk of sickness absence due to low back pain: results of a prospective cohort study. Occup Environ Med 59:323–328

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jansen JP, Morgenstern H, Burdorf A (2004) Dose-response relations between occupational exposures to physical and psychosocial factors and the risk of low back pain. Occup Environ Med 61:972–979

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Karahan A, Kav S, Abbasoglu A, Dogan N (2009) Low back pain: prevalence and associated risk factors among hospital staff. J Adv Nurs 65:516–524

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuijer PP, Frings-Dresen MH, Gouttebarge V, Van Dieën JH, Van der Beek AJ, Burdorf A (2011) Low back pain: we cannot afford ignoring work. Spine J 11:164

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuorinka I, Jonsson B, Kilbom A (1987) Standardized Nordic questionnaires for the analysis of musculoskeletal symptoms. Appl Ergonomics 18:233–237

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kwon DK, Roffey DM, Bishop P, Dagenais S, Wai EK (2011) Systematic review: occupational physical activity and low back pain. Occup Med 61:541–548

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nachemson AL (1981) Disc pressure measurements. Spine 6:93–97

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nahit ES, Macfarlane GJ, Pritchard CM, Cherry NM, Silman AJ (2001) Short term influence of mechanical factors on regional musculoskeletal pain: a study of new workers from 12 occupational groups. Occup Environ Med 58:374–381

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Norman R, Wells R, Neumann P et al (1998) A comparison of peak vs. cumulative physical work exposure risk factors for the reporting of low back pain in the automotive industry. Clin Biomech 13:561–573

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pejtersen JH, Kristensen TS, Borg V, Bjørner JB (2010) The second version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire. Scand J Public Health 38:8–24

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plouvier S, Renahy E, Chastang JF, Bonenfant S, Leclerc A (2008) Biomechanical strains and low back disorders: quantifying the effects of the number of years of exposure on various types of pain. Occup Environ Med 65:268–274

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Prado-Leon LR, Celis A, Avila-Chaurand R (2005) Occupational lifting tasks as a risk factor in low back pain: a case-control study in a Mexican population. Work 25:107–114

    Google Scholar 

  • Pransky G, Buchbinder R, Hayden J (2010) Contemporary low back pain research—and implications for practice. Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol 24:291–298

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roffey DM, Wai EK, Bishop P, Kwon BK, Dagenais S (2010) Causal assessment of workplace manual handling or assisting patients and low back pain: results of a systematic review. Spine J 10:639–651

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sato K, Kikuchi S, Yonezawa T (1999) In vivo intradiscal pressure measurement in healthy individuals and in patients with ongoing back problems. Spine 24:2468–2474

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schneider S, Lipinski S, Schiltenwolf M (2006) Occupations associated with a high risk of self-reported back pain: representative outcomes of a back pain prevalence study in the Federal Republic of Germany. Eur Spine J 15:821–833

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seidler A, Bergmann A, Jäger M, Ellegast R, Ditchen D, Elsner G, Grifka J, Haerting J, Hofmann F, Linhardt O, Luttmann A, Michaelis M, Petereit-Haack G, Schumann B, Bolm-Audorff U (2009) Cumulative occupational lumbar load and lumbar disc disease–results of a German multi-center case-control study (EPILIFT). BMC Musculoskelet Disord 7(10):48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smedley J, Egger P, Cooper C, Coggon D (1995) Manual handling activities and risk of low back pain in nurses. Occup Environ Med 52:160–163

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Twisk JWR (2006) Applied multilevel analysis. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Wai EK, Roffey DM, Bishop P, Kwon BK, Dagenais S (2010) Causal assessment of occupational lifting and low back pain: results of a systematic review. Spine J 10:554–566

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Webster BS, Snook SH (1994) The cost of 1989 workers’ compensation low back pain claims. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 19:1111–1115

Download references

Acknowledgments

Funding for this study was provided by a special grant from the Danish Parliament (satspulje). This founding source had no role in the study’s design, the data collection, the analysis, the interpretation of data, or the decision to submit the paper for publication.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that we have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Andreas Holtermann.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Holtermann, A., Clausen, T., Aust, B. et al. Risk for low back pain from different frequencies, load mass and trunk postures of lifting and carrying among female healthcare workers. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 86, 463–470 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-012-0781-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-012-0781-5

Keywords

Navigation