Back pain is among mankind’s earliest and most enduring afflictions. In fact, cave drawings have depicted early sufferers. Today, back pain has become a major workplace issue.
The American Physical Therapy Association reports that back pain is the most common cause of loss of activity among adults under 45 and that more than 80 percent of workers nationwide suffer back pain at some time during their careers.
Everyone is vulnerable to back injury, but certain occupations present added risk. For example:
- Truck drivers, who sit for long periods while being jostled by vibration
- Nurses and healthcare aides, who spend a lot of time bending over bedsides and lifting and moving patients
- Material handlers, who do a lot of heavy lifting
- Office workers who do a lot of sitting, not always in the best of postures
Off the job, back injury can result from numerous everyday activities, including housework, gardening, athletics, bad sleeping posture, and even “couch-potatoing.” Expectant mothers find their backs stressed in new ways, too, as do parents lifting babies and toddlers.
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Good News!
But there’s good news amid all the potential back hazards.
Dr. Diane Braza of the Medical College of Wisconsin says in an interview in BLR’s OSHA Compliance Advisor that in about 90 percent of back pain cases "the cause is strain or sprain of back muscles, ligaments, or soft tissue," conditions that “generally heal completely.” But Braza also cautions that back problems often recur if effective prevention strategies aren’t used.
It’s good news that most bad backs respond well to rest and conservative treatment. And it’s even better to hear that if your workers take proper precautions, they can prevent most back injuries as well as keep already injured backs from acting up again.
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Lifting and Falling
The most important prevention strategy for back pain is making sure your employees know and practice safe lifting techniques:
- Bend at the knees with feet about 20 inches apart and one slightly ahead of the other.
- Grasp the load firmly before attempting the lift, keeping it close to the body.
- Lift gradually, with your legs, not your back.
- Reverse the steps to put the load down.
Falls are another cause of serious back injuries, so it’s important for your workers to be cautious in the use of stairs and ladders, prompt in cleaning up spills, and meticulous in keeping tripping hazards off walkways.
General Conditioning
Recent studies have indicated that another major factor in avoiding back injury is general conditioning. This includes:
- Maintaining proper posture, without slouching, rounding the shoulders, or accentuating the natural curves of the spine (Proper sleeping posture is also important, using a mattress that is firm but not too hard, on your side or back, not your stomach.)
- Following a healthful diet to avoid gaining weight, which puts added stress on your lower back, especially if you have a "pot belly"
- Exercising regularly, especially with such aerobic activity as walking, bicycling, or swimming
Studies also indicate that smoking can contribute to back pain and injury—so, what do you know, another reason to encourage your workers to quit smoking!
Tomorrow we’ll look at how you can train your employees to avoid back injuries.
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