title: Individual characteristics in occupational accidents due to imbalance: a case-control study of the employees of a railway company.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Falls are frequent occupational accidents, and are responsible for a significant amount of lost working time and, more importantly, for a high mortality. The factors involved in falling mechanisms can be of external or individual origin, the latter being less well identified.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the relations between certain individual characteristics and occupational accidents due to imbalance.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 427 male employees, who had been victims of at least one occupational accident with sick leave due to imbalance (cases) and 427 controls were recruited among the employees of a large French railway company. A standardised questionnaire on life conditions and professional factors, and a description of the accidents was filled in by an occupational physician for each subject.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Some job categories were more affected by a specific release mechanism of work related falls. Certain individual characteristics such as smoking, alcohol consumption, inactivity, sleep disorders, and request for a job change were correlated with the occurrence of occupational accidents. Sick leaves of eight days or over were more frequent in older and overweight injured workers. Some lesions were linked with the specific fall released mechanisms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Individual characteristics can increase the risk of occupational accidents, especially falling. This study identified subjects most at risk on whom prevention related to working conditions and falls could be focused.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Health and Medical Research (INSERM), U 420, Faculté de Médecine, Vandoeuvre-lés-Nancy, France.
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Gauchard
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chau
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Touron
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Benamghar
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dehaene
authors.forename: PhP
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Perrin
authors.forename: J-M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Mur
mesh_terms: D000057:Accident Proneness; D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000062:Accidents, Occupational / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007587:Job Description; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology*; D011890:Railroads; D018582:Sick Leave