Relationships of physical job tasks and living conditions with occupational injuries in coal miners.
This study assessed the relationships of job tasks and living conditions with occupational injuries among coal miners. The sample included randomly selected 516 underground workers. They completed a standardized self-administred questionnaire. The data were analyzed via logistic regression method. The rate of injuries in the past two years was 29.8%. The job tasks with significant crude relative risks were: power hammer, vibrating hand tools, pneumatic tools, bent trunk, awkward work posture, heat, standing about and walking, job tasks for trunk and upper/lower limbs, pain caused by work, and muscular tiredness. Logistic model shows a strong relationship between the number of job tasks (JT) and injuries (adjusted ORs vs. JT 0-1: 2.21, 95%CI 1.27-3.86 for JT 2-6 and 3.82, 2.14-6.82 for JT>or=7), and significant ORs>or=1.71 for face work, not-good-health-status, and psychotropic drug use. Musculoskeletal disorders and certain personality traits were also significant in univariate analysis. Therefore job tasks and living conditions strongly increase the injuries, and occupational physicians could help workers to find remedial measures.
Bhattacherjee
Ashis
A
Department of Mining Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India.
Bertrand
Jean-Pierre
JP
Meyer
Jean-Pierre
JP
Benamghar
Lahoucine
L
Otero Sierra
Carmen
C
Michaely
Jean-Pierre
JP
Ghosh
Apurna Kumar
AK
d'Houtaud
Alphonse
A
Mur
Jean-Marie
JM
Chau
Nearkasen
N
D000062:Accidents, Occupational / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000328:Adult; D003032:Coal Mining / Q000295:instrumentation; D020378:Confined Spaces; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014732:Vibration / Q000009:adverse effects; D000078329:Workforce; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology