title: [Inter-rater agreement on self-reported exposure to ergonomic risk factors for the upper extremities among mechanic assemblers in an automotive industry].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  to assess reproducibility of self-reported exposure to ergonomic hazards for the upper limbs, measured through a questionnaire based on a diffused checklist for the assessment of ergonomic risk (OCRA) in a sample of mechanical assemblers of an automotive industry.
  
  
  METHODS
  cross-sectional study; reproducibility was assessed as interrater agreement of a composite index of ergonomic risk, estimated through the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).
  
  
  METHODS
  58 mechanical assemblers, working in 29 twin areas, characterised by same work stations and tasks.
  
  
  METHODS
  composite index of ergonomic risk for the upper limbs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  reproducibility of the ergonomic index was high in the overall sample (ICC: 0.81) and it was higher for the twin areas employing same-gender workers (ICC: 0.96), compared to those with workers of the opposite gender (ICC: 0.66).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  these results indicate that a questionnaire measuring with a great detail the exposure to the main ergonomic risk factors for the upper limbs, as the one based on the OCRA checklist used for this study, would allow to obtain a highly reproducible ergonomic index. If its validity against the corresponding observational checklist will be found elevated by future studies, this questionnaire may represent a useful tool for a preliminary assessment of workers' exposure to ergonomic hazards for the upper limbs.
authors.affiliation: Servizio sovrazonale di epidemiologia, ASL TO3, Regione Piemonte, Grugliasco (TO). angelo.derrico@epi.piemonte.it.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: d'Errico
authors.affiliation: Fondazione Marco Biagi, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena.
authors.forename: Dario
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.affiliation: Società Canavesana Servizi SpA, Ivrea (TO).
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Merogno
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001336:Automobiles / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D034941:Upper Extremity