Prevalence of Low Back Disorders in Furniture Distribution Centers

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to quantify the prevalence of low back disorders in furniture distribution centers. This was a cross-sectional study with 454 workers in 9 furniture distribution centers. There were five definitions of low back disorders including 1) pain symptoms, 2) Oswestry questionnaire 3) LMM functional performance, 4) medical visits, and 5) lost time. The pain symptoms and Oswestry questionnaire had a one-week prevalence of 56.6% and 54.6%, respectively. The LMM functional performance had a point prevalence of 37.2%. Medical visits and lost time had a one-year prevalence of 11.9% and 7.5%, respectively. The pain symptom prevalence of low back disorder in furniture distribution was similar to that of construction workers and nurses placing this industry among other more well known high risk industries.