IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v14y2022i20p13279-d943442.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Musculoskeletal Acute and Chronic Pain Surveyed among Construction Workers in Wisconsin, United States: A Pilot Study

Author

Listed:
  • Oscar Arias

    (Department of Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health, University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, Whitewater, WI 53190, USA)

  • Gabe Koenig

    (Department of Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health, University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, Whitewater, WI 53190, USA)

  • Sang D. Choi

    (Department of Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health, University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, Whitewater, WI 53190, USA)

Abstract

This pilot study assessed work-related acute and chronic musculoskeletal pain, identified how workers deal with musculoskeletal pain and recognized work-related factors associated with musculoskeletal pain in 23 commercial construction workers. Workers answered a survey about musculoskeletal pain, pain severity, functional limitations, and perceived exertion at work (Borg RPE scale). Eighty-six percent reported acute musculoskeletal pain and 24% chronic pain in the last 12 months. Among those reporting acute pain, 67% sought treatment from a healthcare professional, 64% had prescribed medication, and 39% modified their work habits to handle pain at work. About 80% of the workers reporting chronic pain sought healthcare treatment, had prescribed medication, and modified their work habits to manage pain. Almost 60% of the participants experienced pain in the last seven days. Among them, 46% reported moderate pain in their legs or knees, 31% in their low back, and 23% severe pain in their arms, shoulders, or hands. The assessment of the functional limitations indicated they experienced moderate to severe limitations in performing activities of daily living (ADLs). The logistic regression models suggested a direct relationship between workers’ work physical exertion and their Body Mass Index (BMI) with the occurrence of musculoskeletal pain. Construction workers are dealing with acute and chronic pain at work that negatively impacts their work and ADLs. Work-related and individual factors such as work physical exertion and BMI seem to play a significant role in the presence of acute and chronic pain associated with MSDs. This study’s findings can help guide sustainable ergonomic interventions and future research to alleviate acute and chronic musculoskeletal pain while promoting workers’ health and wellbeing in the construction industry.

Suggested Citation

  • Oscar Arias & Gabe Koenig & Sang D. Choi, 2022. "Musculoskeletal Acute and Chronic Pain Surveyed among Construction Workers in Wisconsin, United States: A Pilot Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-13, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:20:p:13279-:d:943442
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/20/13279/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/20/13279/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rosa Belén Castro Núñez & Pablo Bandeira & Rosa Santero-Sánchez, 2020. "Social Economy, Gender Equality at Work and the 2030 Agenda: Theory and Evidence from Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1, June.
    2. Joanne W.Y. Chung & Henry C.F. So & Vincent C.M. Yan & Phoebe S.T. Kwok & Bonny Y.M. Wong & Jackie Y. Yang & Albert P.C. Chan, 2019. "A Survey of Work-Related Pain Prevalence Among Construction Workers in Hong Kong: A Case-Control Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-12, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ana M. Castaño & M. Asunción Lubiano & Antonio L. García-Izquierdo, 2020. "Gendered Beliefs in STEM Undergraduates: A Comparative Analysis of Fuzzy Rating versus Likert Scales," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-17, August.
    2. Ionuț Viorel Herghiligiu & Ioan-Bogdan Robu & Marinela Istrate & Maria Grosu & Camelia Cătălina Mihalciuc & Adrian Vilcu, 2023. "Sustainable Corporate Performance Based on Audit Report Influence: An Empirical Approach through Financial Transparency and Gender Equality Dimensions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-28, September.
    3. Yasutaka Ozaki & Rajib Shaw, 2022. "Citizens’ Social Participation to Implement Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-18, November.
    4. Eman Leung & Albert Lee & Yilin Liu & Chi-Tim Hung & Ning Fan & Sam C. C. Ching & Hilary Yee & Yinan He & Richard Xu & Hector Wing Hong Tsang & Jingjing Guan, 2024. "Impact of Environment on Pain among the Working Poor: Making Use of Random Forest-Based Stratification Tool to Study the Socioecology of Pain Interference," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(2), pages 1-21, February.
    5. Youkyung Kim & Sangeun Lee & Jeeyeon Lim & Soyeon Park & Sojeong Seong & Youngshin Cho & Heejung Kim, 2021. "Factors Associated with Poor Quality of Sleep in Construction Workers: A Secondary Data Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-12, February.
    6. Miguel Blanco & Lydia Bares & Oksana Hrynevych & Marcos Ferasso, 2021. "Analysis of the Territorial Efficiency of European Funds as an Instrument to Reduce Labor Gender Differences," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-15, January.
    7. Ralf Dethlefsen & Luisa Orlik & Martin Müller & Aristomenis K. Exadaktylos & Stefan M. Scholz & Jolanta Klukowska-Rötzler & Mairi Ziaka, 2022. "Work-Related Injuries among Insured Construction Workers Presenting to a Swiss Adult Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study (2016–2020)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-16, September.
    8. Edith Medina-Hernández & María José Fernández-Gómez & Inmaculada Barrera-Mellado, 2021. "Gender Inequality in Latin America: A Multidimensional Analysis Based on ECLAC Indicators," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-20, November.
    9. Victoria Bogdan & Delia Deliu & Tomina Săveanu & Olimpia Iuliana Ban & Dorina Nicoleta Popa, 2020. "Roll the Dice—Let’s See If Differences Really Matter! Accounting Judgments and Sustainable Decisions in the Light of a Gender and Age Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-31, September.
    10. Hyun-Jin Park & Byung-Yong Jeong, 2021. "Older Male Construction Workers and Sustainability: Work-Related Risk Factors and Health Problems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-14, November.
    11. Filippi, Emilia & Bannò, Mariasole & Trento, Sandro, 2023. "Automation technologies and the risk of substitution of women: Can gender equality in the institutional context reduce the risk?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    12. María Garrido-Ruso & Beatriz Aibar-Guzmán & Albertina Paula Monteiro, 2022. "Businesses’ Role in the Fulfillment of the 2030 Agenda: A Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-35, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:20:p:13279-:d:943442. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.