Thesis (M.P.H.)--University of Michigan, 1946.

Thesis (doctoral)--Lund University, 1995. / Added t.p. with thesis statement inserted.

Published also as E.R. Hayhurst's Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, 1916, with title: Industrial health-hazards and occupational diseases in Ohio. / Prepared in conformity with House joint resolution no. 12 - Eightieth General assembly of Ohio, under the general supervision and direction of the Ohio State Board of Health ... February, 1915. Includes index.

Thesis (M.P.H.)--University of Michigan, 1946.

Thesis (doctoral)--Lund University, 1995. / Added t.p. with thesis statement inserted.

Motivation Occupational driving has often been associated with a high prevalence of low-back pain (LBP). Truck drivers in the petrochemical industry in South Africa are vulnerable to occupational related LBP because of the very nature of their job, and this vulnerability has to date not been quantified. The individual and job factors that contribute to cause this pain are diverse and might include prolonged sitting, exposure to whole-body vibration, heavy physical work, smoking and other psychosocial factors. Studies on the prevalence and knowledge of the risk factors associated with occupational related LBP are important since they allow not only for the determination of the impact of the condition on society or on a given social stratum, but can also help to organize health services and channel investments necessary for the prevention and control of occupational related LBP. Aim The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of occupational related LBP in a defined cohort of truck drivers and to ascertain if certain risk factors i.e. demographic factors of the truck drivers, manual material handling (heavy physical work), static work posture and perceived levels of whole-body vibration are associated with truck driving and LBP. Methods The study design chosen was descriptive, cross-sectional and quantitative in nature. For the study, the widely established “Standardized Nordic Questionnaire” (SNQ) was used to collect data. The questionnaire was divided into three sections, viz. biographical, low-back pain, and risk factors for ease of completion by the participants of this study. A total of 450 drivers participated in the study by completing the questionnaire. SPSS version 15.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA) was used to analyze the data. Descriptive and inferential statistics was used in the analysis of the data. Results Of the 450 drivers, 385 (86%) experience LBP and 65 (14%) reported to have not experienced any form of LBP. On the scale of 0 to 10, 68 drivers (15%) indicated that they had pain as bad as it could be, whereas 32 drivers (7%) indicated that they suffered no back pain at all. When the severity of the pain was categorised, as low, medium and high, 40.5 % of the LBP respondents indicated that they had a high severity of LBP. Smoking, static work posture and total years of driving were all found to be significantly associated with LBP. Whole-body vibration, body mass index (BMI) and heavy physical work were found to have no association with LBP which was not expected. Conclusion The prevalence of occupational related low-back pain in petrochemical truck drivers was 89%. Smoking, static work posture and total years of driving were the risk factors associated with LBP amongst the truck drivers.

This study investigated the prevalence of thumb problems in Australian physiotherapists and the association between these thumb problems and various potential risk factors. Information concerning the nature and type of thumb problems experienced by physiotherapists was also sought. The study sample consisted of a random selection of physiotherapists identified from the registration lists held by the Physiotherapy Registration Boards of each Australian state and the Northern Territory. The measurement tool used in this study was a self-administered questionnaire that was sent to participating physiotherapists by mail. The questionnaire was purpose designed for this study and was based partly on previously used questionnaires that had investigated work related musculoskeletal disorders. In addition, the questionnaire was based on information obtained from informal discussions with colleagues and formal focus groups. As part of its development, the questionnaire underwent a number of pilot studies and a limited study investigating test-retest reliability. / Questionnaires were mailed to 1562 registered Australian physiotherapists, with a return rate of 70.6 per cent and a completion rate of 67.6 per cent. The sample of 961 respondents included in the study appeared representative of the population of Australian physiotherapists from which it was drawn, in terms of demographic data. The current prevalence of thumb problems was found to be 65.3 per cent (394 respondents) and the lifetime prevalence of thumb problems was 55.3 per cent (628 respondents). The factors that were found to be significantly associated with thumb problems included working in the area of orthopaedic outpatients (odds ratios 2.3-3.4), trigger point therapy (odds ratio 2.3) and massage (odds ratio 2.1); the presence of thumb joint hypermobility (odds ratio 2.2-2.6); or an inability to stabilise the joints of the thumb whilst performing physiotherapy techniques (odds ratio 5.0). Other factors such as the hours worked per week, years worked in an area of physiotherapy practice and the presence of general joint pathology did not increase the risk of thumb problems in this sample of Australian physiotherapists. / The symptoms most often reported by the 628 respondents with thumb problems were pain (90.1%) and instability (22.0%). The majority of the thumbs (57.0%) of respondents with thumb problems had been symptomatic for more than one year, but only 9.0 per cent of thumbs had caused symptoms on a daily basis over the last 12 months. The majority of respondents with thumb problems reported an insidious onset to their thumb problems that was related to their work as a physiotherapist (79.6%), with the onset occurring most frequently during the first five years after graduation. The metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint was most commonly identified by respondents as being the source of their thumb problems (33.5%). While thumb symptoms did not affect activities to a marked degree, aching, pain and instability (of the MCP joint) were the symptoms that most often stopped activity. / Approximately half of the respondents (52.2%) with thumb problems in this sample had sought treatment for these problems, with taping the most commonly utilised treatment modality. For those physiotherapists with thumb problems, the thumb problems were found to have had a major effect on their career, with 19.1 per cent of those with thumb problems changing their field of physiotherapy practice and 4.0 per cent leaving the physiotherapy profession as a result of their thumb problems. / In conclusion, the prevalence of thumb problems in Australian physiotherapists appears to be high, and can be of sufficient intensity to impact on physiotherapists careers. Working in the area of manual therapy, having hypermobile thumb joints and being able unable to stabilise the joints of the thumbs whilst performing physiotherapy techniques appear to be particular risk factors for the development of thumb problems in physiotherapists. / Thesis (MApSc(Physiotherapy))--University of South Australia, 2005.

Published also as E.R. Hayhurst's thesis (Ph.D.) University of Chicago, 1916, with title: Industrial health-hazards and occupational diseases in Ohio. / Prepared in conformity with House joint resolution no. 12 - Eightieth General Assembly of Ohio, under the general supervision and direction of the Ohio State Board of Health ... February, 1915.

Inaug.-diss.--Bern.

Thesis (doctoral)--Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität zu München, 1979. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 79-85). Bibliography of Georg Adelmann's works: p. 86-88.