Scandinavian journal of public health
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Scand J Public Health · Dec 2011
Health-related risk factors for disability pensions due to musculoskeletal diagnoses: a 30-year Finnish twin cohort study.
There is a need to better understand work incapacity due to musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) and the factors that contribute to being granted disability pension (DP) with such disorders. A twin cohort study would serve a powerful tool responding to this knowledge gap by providing information on factors affecting DP when controlling for family background. The purpose was to investigate the incidence of and risk factors for DP due to any MSD (n=1,819) and specifically due to osteoarthritis (OA, n=677) in a twin cohort of 24,043 people over a 30-year follow-up. ⋯ The risk of DP due to MSD and OA seemed to be influenced by comorbidities, educational level and social class. Analyses of twin pairs discordant for DP confirmed the results. Accumulated health problems and chronic conditions during the life course may lead to permanent work incapacity.