Skip to main content
PMC home page
Occupational and Environmental Medicine logoLink to Occupational and Environmental Medicine
. 1995 Mar;52(3):160–163. doi: 10.1136/oem.52.3.160

Manual handling activities and risk of low back pain in nurses.

J Smedley 1, P Egger 1, C Cooper 1, D Coggon 1
PMCID: PMC1128180  PMID: 7735387

Abstract

OBJECTIVE--To investigate the risk factors for low back pain in hospital nurses, with particular emphasis on the role of specific nursing activities. METHODS--A cross sectional survey of 2405 nurses employed by a group of teaching hospitals was carried out. Self administered questionnaires were used to collect information about occupational activities, non-occupational risk factors for back symptoms, and history of low back pain. RESULTS--The overall response rate was 69%. Among 1616 women, the lifetime prevalence of back pain was 60% and the one year period prevalence 45%. 10% had been absent from work because of back pain for a cumulative period exceeding four weeks. Rates in men were generally similar to those in women. In women back pain during the previous 12 months was weakly associated with height, and was significantly more common in those who reported frequent non-musculoskeletal symptoms such as headache and low mood. After adjustment for height and non-musculoskeletal symptoms, significant associations were found with frequency of manually moving patients around on the bed, manually transferring patients between bed and chair, and manually lifting patients from the floor. In contrast, no clear increase in risk was found in relation to transfer of patients with canvas and poles, manually lifting patients in and out of the bath, or lifting patients with mechanical aids. Confirmation of these findings is now being sought in a prospective study of the same population. CONCLUSIONS--This study confirms that low back pain is highly prevalent among nurses and is associated with a high level of sickness absence. People who often report non-musculoskeletal symptoms were significantly more likely to report low back pain. Specific manual handling tasks were associated with an increased risk of back pain; however, no such association was found with mechanised patient transfers.

Full text

PDF
160

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Bergquist-Ullman M., Larsson U. Acute low back pain in industry. A controlled prospective study with special reference to therapy and confounding factors. Acta Orthop Scand. 1977;(170):1–117. doi: 10.3109/ort.1977.48.suppl-170.01. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Biering-Sørensen F. Physical measurements as risk indicators for low-back trouble over a one-year period. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1984 Mar;9(2):106–119. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198403000-00002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Biering-Sørensen F., Thomsen C. Medical, social and occupational history as risk indicators for low-back trouble in a general population. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1986 Sep;11(7):720–725. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198609000-00011. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bigos S. J., Battié M. C., Spengler D. M., Fisher L. D., Fordyce W. E., Hansson T. H., Nachemson A. L., Wortley M. D. A prospective study of work perceptions and psychosocial factors affecting the report of back injury. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1991 Jan;16(1):1–6. doi: 10.1097/00007632-199101000-00001. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Frymoyer J. W., Pope M. H., Costanza M. C., Rosen J. C., Goggin J. E., Wilder D. G. Epidemiologic studies of low-back pain. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1980 Sep-Oct;5(5):419–423. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198009000-00005. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Gagnon M., Sicard C., Sirois J. P. Evaluation of forces on the lumbo-sacral joint and assessment of work and energy transfers in nursing aides lifting patients. Ergonomics. 1986 Mar;29(3):407–421. doi: 10.1080/00140138608968274. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Garg A., Owen B. D., Carlson B. An ergonomic evaluation of nursing assistants' job in a nursing home. Ergonomics. 1992 Sep;35(9):979–995. doi: 10.1080/00140139208967377. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Harber P., Billet E., Gutowski M., SooHoo K., Lew M., Roman A. Occupational low-back pain in hospital nurses. J Occup Med. 1985 Jul;27(7):518–524. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Hirsch C., Jonsson B., Lewin T. Low-back symptoms in a Swedish female population. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 1969 Mar-Apr;63:171–176. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kuh D. J., Coggan D., Mann S., Cooper C., Yusuf E. Height, occupation and back pain in a national prospective study. Br J Rheumatol. 1993 Oct;32(10):911–916. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/32.10.911. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Mageed R. A., Vencovsky J., Maini R. N. Rheumatoid factors and germline genes in rheumatoid arthritis: evidence of an intrinsic B-lymphocyte defect? Br J Rheumatol. 1994 Feb;33(2):105–107. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/33.2.105. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Stubbs D. A., Buckle P. W., Hudson M. P., Rivers P. M., Worringham C. J. Back pain in the nursing profession. I. Epidemiology and pilot methodology. Ergonomics. 1983 Aug;26(8):755–765. doi: 10.1080/00140138308963397. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Svensson H. O., Andersson G. B., Hagstad A., Jansson P. O. The relationship of low-back pain to pregnancy and gynecologic factors. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1990 May;15(5):371–375. doi: 10.1097/00007632-199005000-00006. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Svensson H. O., Vedin A., Wilhelmsson C., Andersson G. B. Low-back pain in relation to other diseases and cardiovascular risk factors. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1983 Apr;8(3):277–285. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198304000-00008. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Videman T., Nurminen T., Tola S., Kuorinka I., Vanharanta H., Troup J. D. Low-back pain in nurses and some loading factors of work. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1984 May-Jun;9(4):400–404. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198405000-00013. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Walsh K., Cruddas M., Coggon D. Interaction of height and mechanical loading of the spine in the development of low-back pain. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1991 Dec;17(6):420–424. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.1680. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Walsh K., Cruddas M., Coggon D. Low back pain in eight areas of Britain. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1992 Jun;46(3):227–230. doi: 10.1136/jech.46.3.227. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Walsh K., Cruddas M., Coggon D. Risk of low back pain in people admitted to hospital for traffic accidents and falls. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1992 Jun;46(3):231–233. doi: 10.1136/jech.46.3.231. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Occupational and Environmental Medicine are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES