Low back pain in Norwegian helicopter aircrew.
The size and consequences of low back pain (LBP) in Norwegian helicopter aircrew has been investigated in a retrospective and prospective survey. With 50.5% reporting such pain in a 2-yr period, and Sea King aircrew reporting LBP on on almost half (49.3%) of the missions flown, the magnitude of the problem equals that reported from other air forces. Pilots reported LBP six times more often than other crewmembers and almost half (48.6%) felt the pain influenced the quality of work. This could have flight safety implications. Crewmembers with total flying time over 2,000 h have a significantly higher incidence of sick leave than those with less than 2,000 h. Only 1 pilot out of 10 with total flying time under 500 h had had flight-related LBP.
Hansen
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Royal Norwegian Air Force Institute of Aviation Medicine, Oslo.
Wagstaff
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D000337:Aerospace Medicine; D000401:Aircraft; D006804:Ergonomics; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D008889:Military Personnel; D009664:Norway; D011187:Posture; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires