title: Work-related musculoskeletal problems among women workers in the semiconductor industry in Peninsular Malaysia.
abstract: A cross-sectional study to identify the prevalence of musculoskeletal problems and work-related risk factors was conducted among 906 women semiconductor workers. Highest prevalences were pain in the lower limbs, neck/shoulders, and upper back, and highest exposures were prolonged (> or = four hours per workshift) hand/wrist movement, standing, and lifting with hands. After logistic regression, lower-limb pain was significantly associated with standing, neck/shoulder pain with sitting and lifting, upper-back pain with climbing steps, low back pain with hand/wrist movement, and hand/wrist pain with lifting. Neck/shoulder pain was significantly higher for workers with shorter working durations, while lower-limb pain was significantly higher for workers with longer working durations. End-of-line assembly workers had significantly higher odds ratios for pain at all sites, while middle-of-line workers had higher odds ratios for pain in neck/shoulders and upper back, and wafer-fabrication workers had higher odds ratios for pain in low back and lower limbs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Heng Leng
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Chee
authors.forename: Krishna G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Rampal
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006804:Ergonomics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*