• The Journal of Korean Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.53-60
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• 2022

Background: The aim of the study is to examine whether mediating or moderating effects of stress between teachers' work environment and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Methods: Two hundred nine participants took part in the study and completed the surveys including work environment, stress and work-related musculoskeletal disorders questionnaires. Hayes's PROCESS macro was used to test the research models for mediating and moderating effects of stress between work environment with teachers and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Indirect effect was tested using bootstrapped confidence intervals. Results: The result confirmed that Stress served as a indirect mediator between work environment and work-related musculoskeletal disorders, whereas there was no significant the moderating effect. Conclusion: Stress mediates the relationship between work environment and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Therefore, it is crucial that teachers' work environment that increases stress should be enhanced to reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.183-193
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• 2011

Objectives: A rapid increase in the population of migrant workers in Korea has brought new challenges regarding the possible effects of acculturation on health. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of acculturation- and work-related psychosocial factors on work-related musculoskeletal disorders among migrant female workers living in Korea. Methods: A cross-sectional survey design was used. A translated, structured questionnaire was administrated to 156 southeastern Asian female full-time workers living in Korea. Results: About 35% of the participants experienced some type(s) of work-related musculoskeletal disorder(s), which were more prevalent in Vietnamese women than in Thai and Filipino women. Women who preferred to maintain their own heritage and to reject the host country heritage were at risk for work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Conclusion: Acculturation strategy and nationality were found to be significant factors associated with work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Health professionals need to accommodate acculturation contexts into risk assessment and intervention development for work-related musculoskeletal disorders separately for different nationalities.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.393-404
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to identify the trends and features of existing articles on work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD), and to suggest the direction for future work. Articles on WMSD were reviewed and analyzed by research objects and characteristics. This paper describes a number of issues related to strategies and practices which were done in order to prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders; 1) trends and characteristics of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, 2) legal enforcement related to systems preventing WMSD, 3) workplace assessment methods and guidelines for manual material handling, 4) ergonomic intervention, ergonomics program and its effectiveness. A list of recommendations presented in this study can be used to provide a baseline for the prevention of work-related musculoskeletal disorders.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.298-307
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• 2023

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to analyze the recent trends in patients with work-related musculoskeletal disorders in South Korea and to check the major results by reviewing the literature on the risk factors and prevalence of musculoskeletal diseases related to work. Methods: Industrial disaster data from the Ministry of Employment and Labor from 2012 to 2021 were used, and the literature was reviewed regarding risk factors for musculoskeletal diseases related to work using PubMed and RISS. Results: The trend of patients with work-related musculoskeletal disorders has increased overall since 2017 after declining until 2016, with a particularly notable increase in the average annual number of patients with physical burden work. The average annual rate per ten thousand people for patients with body burden work, non-accidental lower back pain, and carpal tunnel syndrome among work-related diseases was high in the mining industry. The average annual rate per ten thousand people for patients with accidental lower back pain was the highest in the fishing industry. Within the manufacturing field, it was the highest in the shipbuilding and ship repair industry. As a result of the literature review, the search rate for work-related musculoskeletal disease papers in unstructured work was high. In addition, physical stress factors were high among risk factors, and pain areas showed a high rate for the waist. Conclusion: Even after the institutional implementation of a hazard investigation system related to musculoskeletal diseases is implemented, the number of patients with occupational musculoskeletal disorders continues to increase. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct regular surveys and implement effective improvement activities for vulnerable industries or occupations.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.355-363
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• 2022

This study was to investigate the prevalence rate of musculoskeletal disorders in relation to general characteristic factors, living environment factors, and work environment factors for sonographer's. For the response questions, the guidelines for musculoskeletal burden work were used. For statistical analysis, SPSS 26.0 version was used. For the common body parts of the sonographer's who responded, the prevalence was investigated by dividing the group into a group with high pain or discomfort and a group with low pain or discomfort according to the degree to which they experienced symptoms during the past 12 months. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to determine the variance inflation factor(VIF), odds ratio (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI). A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. As a result, housework hours, examination history, regular physical activity, number of patient examinations per day, and sitting posture were investigated as variables for rate musculoskeletal disorders. The sonographer's occupational group was found to have a high prevalence rate of musculoskeletal disorders like various other occupational groups. Based on the results of this study, it is judged that musculoskeletal disorders can be reduced by recognizing musculoskeletal disorders and improving work environment factors.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.405-422
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• 2010

Occupational musculoskeletal disorders currently account for the largest proportion of the occupational illnesses in Korea. In this research, status of musculoskeletal disorders among the occupational illnesses was examined through workers' compensation claims data. Types and characteristics of musculoskeletal disorders were looked at other data set as well. The data sets included epidemiological investigation data reported by Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute, and data collected from occupational disease surveillance reports and Korean occupational health-related scientific journals. Number of cases, incidence rate and insurance benefits for occupational musculoskeletal disorders in Korea are increasing every year. In addition, musculoskeletal disorders occurrence is shifted from large enterprises group to small-and-medium group, from manufacturing to service sector, and from production workers to office and professional workers. Although low back pain is still most common, its occurrence characteristics is gradually shifted from traumatic to cumulative while musculoskeletal disorders are somewhat seemingly moved from lumbar to upper limb body part. Musculoskeletal disorders were observed to be more diverse and prevalent in epidemiological investigations or surveillance data rather in workers' compensation claims data. Musculoskeletal disorders occurrence is related to demographic factors, occupational psychosocial factors, and ergonomic risk factors at workplace for which appropriate preventive measures needed to be made accordingly.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.124-133
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• 2010

Objectives: This study was conducted to develop a model describing the interaction between lifestyle, job, and postural factors and parts of the upper extremities in shipyard workers. Methods: A questionnaire survey was given to 2,140 workers at a shipyard in Ulsan City. The questionnaire consisted of questions regarding the subjects' general characteristics, lifestyle, tenure, physical burden, job control, posture and musculoskeletal symptoms. The overall relationship between variables was analyzed by a structural equation model (SEM). Results: The positive rate of upper extremity musculoskeletal symptoms increased in employees who worked longer hours, had severe physical burden, and did not have any control over their job. Work with a more frequent unstable posture and for longer hours was also associated with an increased positive rate of musculoskeletal symptoms. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that unstable posture and physical burden were closely related to the positive rate of musculoskeletal symptoms after controlling for age, smoking, drinking, exercise, tenure, and job control. In SEM analysis, work-related musculoskeletal disease was influenced directly and indirectly by physical and job stress factors, lifestyle, age, and tenure (p < 0.05). The strongest correlations were found between physical factors and work-related musculoskeletal disease. Conclusion: The model in this study provides a better approximation of the complexity of the actual relationship between risk factors and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Among the variables evaluated in this study, physical factors (work posture) had the strongest association with musculoskeletal disorders.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.73-84
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• 2005

Musculoskeletal Disorders are usually caused or aggravated by poor work processes and unsuitable working conditions - that involve repetitive or forceful movements or the maintenance of constrained or awkward postures. The condition is characterized by discomfort and persistent pain. Case and Demographic Characteristics for Work-related Injuries and Illnesses Involving Days Away From Work, 2003. U.S" was examined. Causes of musculoskeletal disorders for assembly line workers were carpal tunnel syndrome(CTS), tendonitis, low back pain, and occupational stress. Recommendations of improvement for productivity are redesign of working conditions, exercise, prevent of musculoskeletal disorders and avoiding stress.

• The Journal of the Korea institute of electronic communication sciences
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.1463-1469
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• 2012

This study aims to identify the relations between self-reported symptoms of industrial workers work-related musculoskeletal disorders and psychosocial factors. The subjects of the study were 120 male workers who were using the rehabilitation center of K company and they were voluntarily interviewed with a use of organized questionnaire. Except the responses from eighteen subjects whose responses were insincere and who had disorders in musculoskeletal areas, the responses of 102 ones were decided for the final analysis. The results showed that there were significant differences in self-reported symptoms of work-related musculoskeletal disorders between the subjects according to smoking, physical burden and self-efficacy. To prevent and control work-related musculoskeletal disorders, multi-characteristic aspects of how the disorders appeared and psychological factors, in particular, self-efficacy, should be carefully considered. Then, as psychosocial factors affect musculoskeletal disorders, relations between the disorders and factors should be analysed through long-term follow-up studies, psychosocial factors should be actively intervened, and the effect should be evaluated.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.293-302
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• 2015

Objective: This study was performed to investigate the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in auto workers of a mission assembly plants. Background: Most studies of musculoskeletal disorders have used car assembly line workers as their participants. However, little research has been done on musculoskeletal disorders afflictions of mission assembly line workers. Method: Through a focus group interview with an ergonomist and a manager at a mission assembly plant site, a questionnaire was developed for musculoskeletal disorders. The questionnaire consisted of five parts, demographic factors, musculoskeletal disorder symptoms, and musculoskeletal disorder experiences; 137 workers participated in this survey. The surveys were analyzed by correlation and Chi-squared analysis. Results: Musculoskeletal disorder symptoms and serious pain were reported in the neck, shoulder, back, and fingers. These problems were statistically related to various demographic factors, such as age, stature, stretching, and work satisfaction. Conclusion: Treatment of musculoskeletal disorders should consider the workers' traits. If there is no specific cause of the pain, developing stretches and exercises before and after work should be applied to prevent musculoskeletal disorders. Application: The results of this study can be used to develop guidelines to prevent injury in auto workers at mission assembly plants.