Background

Trends in urbanization contribute to the growing global demand for raw construction materials. The health effects of load carrying among occupational groups that mine and carry sand and stone used for construction of roads and buildings remains poorly understood.

Methods

We conducted an exploratory cross-sectional study among a convenience sample of sand miners working at an excavation site on the Seti River in Pokhara, Nepal. Load carrying weight, duration, and frequency were used to categorize miners as having “low” or “high” load-carrying exposures. Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) were identified using self-reported symptoms of moderate to severe musculoskeletal pain, as well as physical examinations.

Results

The average loads carried by female and male sand miners weighed 66 kg and 87 kg, respectively. Among all participants (N = 42), 45% reported moderate to severe musculoskeletal pain in at least one body region and 16 (38%) had MSDs identified using specified case criteria. The prevalence of MSDs was lower among miners carrying, on average, heavier loads compared to those carrying lighter loads (OR = 0.18; 95% CI: 0.04, 0.7), possibly indicative of the healthy worker survival effect. Miners carrying loads for longer durations had higher odds of MSDs compared with those carrying for shorter durations.

Conclusion

This study has provided data on the extraordinary loads carried by sand miners in Nepal and preliminary evidence of health impacts associated with these loads. However, larger epidemiologic studies are needed to justify action to protect the health and safety of these unrecognized and understudied groups.

中文翻译：

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负重与肌肉骨骼健康：尼泊尔卡斯基区博卡拉采砂工人生物力学风险因素的探索性研究

背景

城市化趋势导致全球对建筑原材料的需求不断增长。挖掘和搬运用于建造道路和建筑物的沙子和石头的职业群体中，承载载荷对健康的影响仍然知之甚少。

方法

我们对在尼泊尔博卡拉 Seti 河的一个挖掘现场工作的采砂工人的便利样本进行了一项探索性横断面研究。承载重量、持续时间和频率用于将矿工分类为“低”或“高”承载暴露。肌肉骨骼疾病 (MSD) 是通过自我报告的中度至重度肌肉骨骼疼痛症状以及体格检查来确定的。

结果

女性和男性采砂工的平均负载分别为 66 公斤和 87 公斤。在所有参与者 (N = 42) 中，45% 的人报告至少有一个身体部位出现中度至重度肌肉骨骼疼痛，16 人 (38%) 患有使用特定病例标准确定的 MSD。平均而言，与携带较轻负载的矿工相比，携带较重负载的矿工的 MSD 患病率较低（OR = 0.18；95% CI：0.04, 0.7），这可能表明对健康工人的生存影响。与搬运时间较短的矿工相比，搬运时间较长的矿工发生 MSD 的几率更高。

结论

这项研究提供了关于尼泊尔采砂工所承受的异常负载的数据以及与这些负载相关的健康影响的初步证据。然而，需要更大规模的流行病学研究来证明采取行动保护这些未被承认和研究不足的群体的健康和安全是合理的。