Kabongo Khathutshelo P, Naidoo Saloshni
Department of Mineral Resources, Pretoria, South Africa.
Discipline of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Nursing and Public Health, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
S Afr J Physiother. 2021 Jan 18;77(1):1476. doi: 10.4102/sajp.v77i1.1476. eCollection 2021.
Mineworkers, including females, are prone to work-related musculoskeletal disorders and these disorders are not well reported amongst female mineworkers in South Africa.
This study aimed to identify the factors associated with the presence of musculoskeletal pain over a 12-month period amongst female mineworkers ( = 225) in a South African goldmine.
Female mineworkers' responses to the presence of musculoskeletal pain over the previous 12-month period and their exposure to physical and psychological factors were elicited using a standardised questionnaire. Descriptive and multivariable analytical statistics were conducted to test for associations between physical and psychological factors and the presence of musculoskeletal pain over the previous 12 months.
The median age of participants was 40 years, with 50.22% of participants reporting the presence of musculoskeletal pain over the previous 12 months. On multivariable analysis, education level and good to excellent health status were protective against the existence of pain during the previous 12 months. Participants' perceived ratings of experiencing moderate-to-high pain intensities were significantly associated with reports of pain over the past 12 months.
These findings may raise awareness amongst physiotherapists and occupational medicine physicians about the factors associated with musculoskeletal pain amongst female mineworkers, which they can then use in managing and developing interventions aimed at improving the physical health of female mineworkers.
Our study highlights the need for medical surveillance of musculoskeletal pain in female mineworkers. A cohort study in a larger study population and across several mines will build on the existing cross-sectional information and help inform workplace interventions for female mineworkers.
包括女性在内的矿工容易患上与工作相关的肌肉骨骼疾病，而在南非女性矿工中，这些疾病的报告并不充分。
本研究旨在确定南非某金矿中225名女性矿工在12个月期间与肌肉骨骼疼痛存在相关的因素。
使用标准化问卷收集女性矿工在过去12个月内对肌肉骨骼疼痛存在情况的反应以及她们所接触的身体和心理因素。进行描述性和多变量分析统计，以检验身体和心理因素与过去12个月内肌肉骨骼疼痛存在之间的关联。
参与者的中位年龄为40岁，50.22%的参与者报告在过去12个月内存在肌肉骨骼疼痛。多变量分析显示，教育水平和良好至优秀的健康状况可预防过去12个月内疼痛的存在。参与者对经历中度至高度疼痛强度的感知评分与过去12个月内的疼痛报告显著相关。
这些发现可能会提高物理治疗师和职业医学医生对女性矿工中与肌肉骨骼疼痛相关因素的认识，然后他们可以将这些因素用于管理和制定旨在改善女性矿工身体健康的干预措施。
我们的研究强调了对女性矿工肌肉骨骼疼痛进行医学监测的必要性。在更大的研究人群和多个矿山进行队列研究将基于现有的横断面信息，并有助于为女性矿工的工作场所干预提供信息。
