Original scientific paper
Occurrence of rheumatic diseases in an industrial establishment
S. Androić
; Zavod za reumatske bolesti »Dr Dora Filipović«, Zagreb
Abstract
In a large electrical works with more than 6,000 workers and employees (66.6% workers, 3.3.4% clerks and other employees) the examination of 300 rheumatic patients was carried out. Out of them 96% were workers and 14% employees. The analysis of working places, methods of work, and working environment has shown that heavy physical work, the work requiring physiologically unfavorable attitudes, and bad microclimatic conditions are the cause of an increased incidence of rheumatic disorders. This was particularly pronounced in five (out of 21) large working premises with particularly bad working conditions. Out of the most frequent rheumatic diseases (the low back pain syndrome, inflammatory rheumatism, and periarthritis of the shoulder) representing 65.1 % of all the rheumatic diseases observed among the patients examined, 48.4% related to the workers working in the above mentioned five working premises. The most frequent rheumatic diseases in the workers examined was the low back pain syndrome amounting to 53.9% of all the other rheumatic diseases. The results obtained indicate that traumatic and microtraumatic factors, as well as hygienic conditions, are the main factors in the pathogenesis of this disease. The same factors have proved to influence the incidence of inflammatory (6%) and degenerative (14%) rheumatic diseases. Some recommendations for the prevention of rheumatic diseases in industry are brought forth.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
181742
URI
Publication date:
25.9.1962.
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