Effect of Informal Employment on the Relationship Between Psychosocial Work Risk Factors and Musculoskeletal Pain in Central American Workers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Aragón A ; Benavides FG ; Carmenate-Milián L ; Gimeno Ruiz de Porras D ; Rojas Garbanzo M
• Description:
  Introduction: The constant increase on the psychosocial demands experienced at work seems to contribute to the increase in health problems such as musculoskeletal pain (MSP). This association may be especially important in low-income and middle-income countries, where there is a large proportion of informal workers among whom there is little research. We analysed the association between psychosocial work risk factors and MSP among formal and informal workers using the First Central American Survey of Working Conditions and Health. Methods: This is a representative sample (n=12,024) of the economically active population of the six Spanish-speaking countries of Central America. Prevalence ratios (PR) and corresponding 95% CIs from Poisson regression models were used to estimate the association between psychosocial work risk factors and the MSP. Results: Compared with formal workers, informal workers reported higher prevalence of MPS in the body regions analysed (ie, cervicodorsal, lumbosacral, upper extremities) and higher exposure to psychosocial work risk factors. However, on the whole, the associations between the exposure to psychosocial work risk factors and the prevalence of MSP were similar for both formal and informal workers. Only the association between exposure to high demands and MSP in the upper extremities was higher (p=0.012) among formal (PR=1.69, 95% CI 1.46 to 1.96) than among informal workers (PR=1.40; 95% CI 1.30 to 1.51). Conclusion: Exposure to adverse levels of psychosocial work risk factors is associated with higher prevalence of MPS among both formal and informal workers. However, the role of employment informality in this association is complex and requires further examination. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomechanical Phenomena Economics Epidemiology Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Race Factors Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Stress, Psychological Surveys And Questionnaires Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Biomechanics Body Regions Health Effects Health Surveys Humans Job Analysis Job Stress MSD Musculoskeletal System Disorders Physical Stress Psychosocial Factors Racial Factors Regression Analysis Risk Factors Socioeconomics Upper Extremities Work Environment

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• ISSN:
  1351-0711
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  74
• Issue:
  9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052736
• Citation:
  Occup Environ Med 2017 Sep; 74(9):645-651
• Contact Point Address:
  Marianela Rojas Garbanzo, Programa Salud, Trabajo y Ambiente en América Central, Instituto Regional de Estudios en Sustancias Tóxicas, Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, Heredia 86-3000, Costa Rica
• Email:
  marianela.rojas.garbanzo@una.cr
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:773cd1dbac5c15841913dd87519ba6e603c63e7fa580c90c74dcbe2ef346c2ee56b065495239972fbf7c42db2977f47d4bc5c0b0a78aa442d4dad8e30c5b55f6
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/212214/cdc_212214_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 298.34 KB ]