| Literature DB >> 27461535 |
Ning Jia1, Tao Li1, Shuangqiu Hu2, Xinhe Zhu2, Kang Sun2, Long Yi3, Qiong Zhang3, Guilian Luo4, Yuzhen Li1, Xueyan Zhang1, Yongen Gu1, Zhongxu Wang5.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: With the increasingly severe energy shortage and climate change problems, developing wind power has become a key energy development strategy and an inevitable choice to protect the ecological environment worldwide. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of low back pain (LBP) and analyze its risk factors among operation and maintenance personnel in wind farms (OMPWF).Entities:
Keywords: Ergonomic; Low back pain; Risk factors; Wind farms
Mesh:
Year: 2016 PMID: 27461535 PMCID: PMC4962352 DOI: 10.1186/s12891-016-1180-y
Source DB: PubMed Journal: BMC Musculoskelet Disord ISSN: 1471-2474 Impact factor: 2.362
Demographic characteristics of the participants (n = 151)
| Characteristics | N (%) | Mean (SD) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (yr) | <25 | 48 (31.79) | 25.96 (2.26) |
| 25~ | 90 (59.60) | ||
| 30~ | 13 (8.61) | ||
| Height (cm) | <170 | 53 (35.10) | 171.89 (5.41) |
| 170~ | 49 (32.45) | ||
| 175~ | 49 (32.45) | ||
| Weight (kg) | <60 | 31 (20.53) | 66.87 (9.26) |
| 60~ | 60 (39.74) | ||
| 70~ | 60 (39.74) | ||
| Working-age (yr) | <1 | 27 (17.88) | 3.60 (2.19) |
| 1~ | 22 (14.57) | ||
| 2~ | 102 (67.55) | ||
| Working hours per week (h) | <40 | 13 (8.61) | 44.70 (1.86) |
| 40~ | 79 (52.32) | ||
| 45~ | 59 (39.07) | ||
| Education | High school | 1 (0.66) | |
| Bachelor’s degree | 136 (90.07) | ||
| Higher than Bachelor’s degree | 14 (9.27) |
Adverse ergonomic factors of LBP among OMPWF with univariate analysis
| Adverse ergonomic risk factors | Low back pain | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of workers | Case | OR | (95 % CI) | |
| Awkward posture | ||||
| Working with the hand(s) above the head, or the elbows above the shoulders, more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 6 | 4 | 1 | |
| Yes | 145 | 130 | 4.33 | (0.73–25.68) |
| Repeatedly raising the hand(s) above the head, or the elbow(s) above the shouder(s) more than once per minute, more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 12 | 10 | 1 | |
| Yes | 139 | 124 | 1.65 | (0.33–8.27) |
| Working with the neck bent more than 45° (without support or the ability to vary posture), more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 14 | 11 | 1 | |
| Yes | 137 | 123 | 2.40 | (0.60–9.63) |
| Working with the back bent forward more than 30° (without support or the ability to vary posture), more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 10 | 8 | 1 | |
| Yes | 141 | 126 | 2.10 | (0.41–10.82) |
| Working with the back bent forward more than 45° (without support or the ability to vary posture), more than 2 h total per day | 21 | 17 | 1 | |
| No | 130 | 117 | 2.12 | (0.620–7.25) |
| Yes | ||||
| Squatting more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 4 | 2 | 1 | |
| Yes | 147 | 132 | 8.80 | (1.15–67.10)* |
| Kneeling more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 32 | 27 | 1 | |
| Yes | 119 | 107 | 1.65 | (0.54–5.09) |
| High hand force | ||||
| Pinching an unsupported object(s) weighing 2 lbs or more per hand, or pinching with a force of 4 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile highly repetitive motion more than 3 h total per day | ||||
| No | 22 | 10 | 1 | |
| Yes | 129 | 114 | 0.76 | (0.16–3.58) |
| Pinching an unsupported object(s) weighing 2 lbs or more per hand, or pinching with a force of 4 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile hand/wrist in awkward posture more than 3 h total per day | ||||
| No | 28 | 23 | 1 | |
| Yes | 123 | 111 | 2.01 | (0.65–6.26) |
| Pinching an unsupported object(s) weighing 2 lbs or more per hand, or pinching with a force of 4 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile no other risk factors more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 22 | 18 | 1 | |
| Yes | 129 | 116 | 1.98 | (0.58–6.76) |
| Gripping an unsupported object(s) weighing 10lbs or more per hand, or gripping with a force of 10 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile highly repetitive motion more than 3 h total per day | ||||
| No | 15 | 12 | 1 | |
| Yes | 136 | 122 | 2.179 | (0.55–8.67) |
| Gripping an unsupported object(s) weighing 10lbs or more per hand, or gripping with a force of 10 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile hand/wrist in awkward posture more than 3 h total per day | ||||
| No | 27 | 23 | 1 | |
| Yes | 124 | 111 | 1.49 | (0.44–4.97) |
| Gripping an unsupported object(s) weighing 10lbs or more per hand, or gripping with a force of 10 lbs or more per hand, meanwhile no other risk factors more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 10 | 10 | 1 | |
| Yes | 141 | 124 | 1.14 | (1.07–1.21)* |
| Highly repetitive motion | ||||
| Using the same motion with little or no variation every few seconds, and high, forceful exertions with the hand(s) more than 2 h total per day | ||||
| No | 28 | 25 | 1 | |
| Yes | 123 | 109 | 0.93 | (0.25–3.50) |
| Using the same motion with little or no variation every few seconds, meanwhile no other risk factors more than 6 h total per day | ||||
| No | 32 | 29 | 1 | |
| Yes | 119 | 105 | 0.78 | (0.21–2.88) |
| Intensive keying and hand / wrist in awkward posture more than 4 h total per day | ||||
| No | 26 | 24 | 1 | |
| Yes | 125 | 110 | 0.61 | (0.13–2.85) |
| Intensive keying and no other risk factors more than 7 h total per day | ||||
| No | 31 | 29 | 1 | |
| Yes | 120 | 105 | 0.44 | (0.10–2.23) |
| Repeated impact | ||||
| Using the hand (heel/base of palm) as a hammer more than once per minute, more than 2 h total per day | ||||
| No | 41 | 34 | 1 | |
| Yes | 110 | 100 | 2.06 | (0.73–5.83) |
| Using the knee as a hammer more than once per minute, or more than 2 h total per day | ||||
| No | 55 | 45 | 1 | |
| Yes | 96 | 89 | 2.83 | (1.01–7.92)* |
| Heavy, Frequent or Awkward Lifting | ||||
| Lifting object weighing more than 75 lb and more than 10 times per day | ||||
| No | 115 | 104 | 1 | |
| Yes | 36 | 30 | 0.53 | (0.18–1.55) |
| Lifting object weighing more than 55 lb and more than 10 times per day | ||||
| No | 13 | 11 | 1 | |
| Yes | 138 | 123 | 1.49 | (0.30–7.38) |
| Lifting objects weighing more than 10 lb if done more than twice per minute, or more than 2 h total per day | ||||
| No | 28 | 21 | 1 | |
| Yes | 123 | 113 | 3.77 | (1.29–11.01)* |
| Lifting objects weighing more than 25 lb above the shoulders, below the knees or at arms length more than 25 times per day | ||||
| No | 27 | 23 | 1 | |
| Yes | 124 | 111 | 1.49 | (0.44–4.97) |
| Moderate to high hand-arm vibration | ||||
| Using impact wrenches, carpet strippers, chain saws, percussive tools (jack hammers, scalers, riveting or chipping hammers) or other tools that typically have high vibration levels, more than 30 min total per day | ||||
| No | 52 | 44 | 1 | |
| Yes | 99 | 90 | 1.82 | (0.66–5.03) |
| Using grinders, sanders, jigsaws or other hand tools that typically have moderate vibration levels more than 2 h total per day | ||||
| No | 46 | 41 | 1 | |
| Yes | 105 | 93 | 0.95 | (0.31–2.86) |
LBP low back pain, OR odds ratio, CI confidence interval
*Significant at p < 0.05
Comparison of psychosocial health situations in the LBP positive and negative groups among OMPWF
| Subscale | The LBP positive groups( | The LBP negative groups( |
|
| ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean | S.D. | Mean | S.D. | |||
| Somatization | 1.77 | 0.59 | 1.36 | 0.37 | 8.115 | 0.000 |
| Obsessive compulsive | 1.83 | 0.59 | 1.56 | 0.51 | 4.405 | 0.000 |
| Interpersonal sensitivity | 1.57 | 0.62 | 1.39 | 0.41 | 3.404 | 0.001 |
| Depression | 1.64 | 0.61 | 1.46 | 0.44 | 3.463 | 0.001 |
| Anxiety | 1.53 | 0.58 | 1.38 | 0.45 | 3.028 | 0.003 |
| Hostility | 1.51 | 0.58 | 1.34 | 0.38 | 3.390 | 0.001 |
| Phobic anxiety | 1.27 | 0.45 | 1.17 | 0.28 | 2.433 | 0.016 |
| Paranoid ideation | 1.52 | 0.58 | 1.38 | 0.38 | 2.812 | 0.006 |
| Psychoticism | 1.52 | 0.53 | 1.29 | 0.36 | 5.079 | 0.000 |
LBP, low back pain
Fig. 1The prevalence trends of LBP by different height levels
Fig. 2The prevalence trends of LBP by different hip knee distance levels
Individual and lifestyle factors of LBP among OMPWF with univariate analysis
| Variable | Number of workers | Cases | LBP (%) | χ2 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | |||||
| < 25 | 48 | 41 | 85.4 | 0.839 | 0.657 |
| 25~ | 90 | 81 | 90.0 | ||
| 30~ | 13 | 12 | 92.3 | ||
| Working-age | |||||
| < 1 | 27 | 24 | 88.9 | 0.194 | 0.907 |
| 1~ | 64 | 56 | 87.5 | ||
| 3~ | 60 | 54 | 90.0 | ||
| Weight (kg) | |||||
| < 60 | 31 | 27 | 87.1 | 0.856 | 0.652 |
| 60~ | 60 | 55 | 91.7 | ||
| 70~ | 60 | 52 | 86.7 | ||
| Height (cm) | |||||
| < 170 | 53 | 48 | 90.6 | 3.949 | 0.139 |
| 170~ | 49 | 40 | 81.6 | ||
| 175~ | 49 | 46 | 93.9 | ||
| Physical exercise | |||||
| yes | 38 | 34 | 89.5 | 0.027 | 1.000 |
| no | 113 | 100 | 88.5 | ||
| Smoking | |||||
| Yes | 57 | 51 | 89.5 | 0.049 | 1.000 |
| No | 94 | 83 | 88.3 | ||
| Drinking | |||||
| Yes | 130 | 114 | 87.7 | 1.030 | 0.469 |
| No | 21 | 20 | 95.2 | ||
| Using the computer time during your spare time(h) | |||||
| < 1 | 17 | 17 | 100 | 11.926 | 0.008 |
| 1~ | 32 | 26 | 81.2 | ||
| 2~ | 51 | 50 | 98.0 | ||
| 3~ | 51 | 41 | 80.4 | ||
| The height of chair(cm) | |||||
| < 35 | 17 | 15 | 88.2 | 0.086 | 0.958 |
| > 50 | 21 | 19 | 90.5 | ||
| 35–50 | 111 | 98 | 88.3 | ||
| The height of desk (cm) | |||||
| < 50 | 76 | 68 | 89.5 | 9.691 | 0.008 |
| > 72 | 50 | 48 | 96.0 | ||
| 50–72 | 25 | 18 | 72.0 | ||
| Legroom underneath the desk | |||||
| Yes | 111 | 96 | 86.5 | 1.906 | 0.240 |
| No | 38 | 36 | 94.7 | ||
| Whether the keyboard and mouse at the same height | |||||
| Yes | 137 | 120 | 87.6 | 1.681 | 0.362 |
| No | 12 | 12 | 100.0 | ||
| Backrest | |||||
| Yes | 45 | 36 | 80.0 | 3.610 | 0.069 |
| No | 46 | 43 | 93.5 | ||
LBP low back pain
Multivariate logistic regression model predicting the risk factors of LBP among OMPWF
| Variable | Coefficient | Waldχ2 | AOR | 95%CI |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backrest | −1.010 | 10.800 | 0.36 | 0.20–0.67 | 0.001 |
| Somatization | 0.992 | 10.595 | 2.70 | 1.48–4.91 | 0.001 |
| Squatting more than 4 h total per day | 1.133 | 4.543 | 3.10 | 1.10–8.80 | 0.033 |
| Lifting objects weighing more than 10 lb if done more than twice per minute, more than 2 h total per day | 1.455 | 4.718 | 4.29 | 1.15–15.94 | 0.030 |
AOR adjusted odds ratio, CI confidence interval