The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society
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Review
Causal assessment of occupational carrying and low back pain: results of a systematic review.
Occupational low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that results in high healthcare use and a heavy societal burden from morbidity and medical costs. The etiology of LBP is unclear, although numerous physical activities in the workplace have been implicated in its development. Determining the causal relationship between LBP and specific occupational activities requires a rigorous methodological approach. ⋯ This review failed to identify high-quality studies that supported any of the Bradford-Hill criteria to establish causality between occupational carrying and LBP. Based on these results, it is unlikely that occupational carrying is independently causative of LBP in the populations of workers studied.
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Review
Causal assessment of occupational carrying and low back pain: results of a systematic review.
Occupational low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that results in high healthcare use and a heavy societal burden from morbidity and medical costs. The etiology of LBP is unclear, although numerous physical activities in the workplace have been implicated in its development. Determining the causal relationship between LBP and specific occupational activities requires a rigorous methodological approach. ⋯ This review failed to identify high-quality studies that supported any of the Bradford-Hill criteria to establish causality between occupational carrying and LBP. Based on these results, it is unlikely that occupational carrying is independently causative of LBP in the populations of workers studied.
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Low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder associated with a considerable social and economic burden within the working-age population. Despite an unclear etiology, numerous physical activities are suspected of leading to LBP. Declaring a causal relationship between occupational activities and LBP remains challenging and requires a methodologically rigorous approach. ⋯ The studies reviewed did not support a causal association between workplace manual handling or assisting patients and LBP in a Bradford-Hill framework. Conflicting evidence in specific subcategories of assisting patients was identified, suggesting that tasks such as assisting patients with ambulation may possibly contribute to LBP. It appears unlikely that workplace manual handling or assisting patients is independently causative of LBP in the populations of workers studied.
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Low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder associated with a considerable social and economic burden within the working-age population. Despite an unclear etiology, numerous physical activities are suspected of leading to LBP. Declaring a causal relationship between occupational activities and LBP remains challenging and requires a methodologically rigorous approach. ⋯ The studies reviewed did not support a causal association between workplace manual handling or assisting patients and LBP in a Bradford-Hill framework. Conflicting evidence in specific subcategories of assisting patients was identified, suggesting that tasks such as assisting patients with ambulation may possibly contribute to LBP. It appears unlikely that workplace manual handling or assisting patients is independently causative of LBP in the populations of workers studied.