ABSTRACT

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMD) are increasingly a concern to occupational health and safety professionals, ergonomists, industrial engineers, employers, unions and workers. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has shown that all types of WRMD have increased as a percent of total occupational illnesses. In 1995, WRMD associated with repeated trauma accounted for 308 000 cases or 62% of new illness cases in private industry (BLS 1997). WRMD include tendon disorders (e.g. shoulder tendinitis), nerve disorders (e.g. carpal tunnel syndrome, thoracic outlet syndrome), muscle disorders (e.g. tension neck syndrome), joint disorders (e.g. osteoarthrosis), vascular disorders (e.g. hypothenar hammer syndrome), bursa disorders (e.g. knee bursitis) and unspecified musculoskeletal symptoms or multiple-tissue disorders (Hagberg et al. 1995). Recent studies indicate a potential link between work organization, job stress and WRMD (NIOSH 1992; Smith et al. 1992), and theories on these links have been proposed (Sauter and Swanson 1996; Smith and Carayon 1996). Here are reviewed theories and empirical studies on the relationship between work organization, psychosocial work factors, stress and WRMD.