title: Chronic back pain among older construction workers in the United States: a longitudinal study.
abstract: This study assessed chronic back pain among older construction workers in the United States by analyzing data from the 1992-2008 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a large-scale longitudinal survey. Fixed-effects methods were applied in the multiple logistic regression model  to explore the association between back pain and time-varying factors (e.g., employment, job characteristics, general health status) while controlling for stable variables (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity). Results showed that about 40% of older construction workers over the age of 50 suffered  from persistent back pain or problems. Jobs involving a great deal of stress or physical effort significantly increased the risk of back disorders and longest-held jobs in construction increased the odds of back disorders by 32% (95% CI: 1·04-1·67). Furthermore, poor physical  and mental health were strongly correlated with back problems. Enhanced interventions for construction workers are urgently needed given the aging workforce and high prevalence of back disorders in this industry.
authors: CPWR - The Center for Construction Research and Training, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910, USA. S.Dong@cpwr.com
authors: Xiuwen S
authors: XS
authors: Dong
authors: Xuanwen
authors: X
authors: Wang
authors: Alissa
authors: A
authors: Fujimoto
authors: Ronald
authors: R
authors: Dobbin
mesh_terms: D001416:Back Pain; D004651:Employment; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D009790:Occupations; D014481:United States