Guide to Avoiding Back Pain at Work

The workplace, regardless of the type of work you do, can be a dangerous place for workers health. Workers are equally at risk of injury if they do heavy manual labor and office work. Each type of work carries its own risk of injury. Regardless of the type of work they do, workers need to be cautious to avoid injuring their back in the workplace.  Lifting heavy objects incorrectly or sitting in the wrong position while working at a computer are just a few of the major causes for back problems at work.

Common Back Problems

Many back problems occur because of either injuring the back in an accident, fall or other trauma to the back. Other back problems can be because of genetic problems that weaken the back, and still others are caused by mistreating the back because of heavy lifting, or sitting in an improper position.

• Back Pain Definition – Definition of the problems of back pain from the Mayo Clinic.
• Back Pain Overview – Symptoms, treatment and other aspects of common back problems.
• Back Pain Resources – Collection of resources on various problems associated with the back.
• Handout on Health – Resource and information on different aspects of back pain.
• Upper Back Pain – Information on pain that starts in the head and neck area and extends to the middle back.
• Low Back Pain – Description and treatment of ailments in the lower back area.
• Summary on Back Pain – Overview of the various types of common back problems.

Repetitive Strain Injury

One of the most common problems with workers is the problem of Repetitive Strain Injury. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) is a problem that occurs when workers do the same job and the same way all the time. The problems exist when workers do things improperly or when working conditions exist to cause RSI’s.

• Repetitive Strain Injury – Information on causes, identification and treatment of RSI’s.
• Computer Related RSI – Description of what RSI is and how computer usage can affect the hand, arm, neck and back.
• Repetitive Stress Injury – Similar to Repetitive Strain Injury, this article talks about the problems of continuous stress on the body.
• Preventing RSI – Outline of how workers can prevent being victims of RSI.
• RSI Information – Overview of how RSI’s can affect workers and what can be done to prevent them.
• RSI Prevention – Suggestions from OSHA on how you can prevent RSI’s.

Ergonomics

One of the biggest concerns of employers and employees is proper ergonomics for workers. By having good working conditions and proper site lines for people that work on computers for most of the day, the chances of RSI or other back and neck pain will be greatly reduced. More companies are starting to improve working conditions which in turn will make employees more productive and also reduces the amount of working time missed due to injury.

• Ergonomics – Recommendations from OSHA on how to improve the ergonomics in the workplace.
• Ergonomics Information – Medline Plus information on how ergonomics in the workplace can reduce the problems of neck, hand, back and related problems.
• Ergonomics Web – Resources on a wide variety of ergonomic topics from Cornell University.
• 10 Ergonomic Tips – Suggestions on how to improve the ergonomics in the workplace.
• Ergonomics in the Workplace – Guidelines on how to make the workplace better to reduce or eliminate pain.
• Ergonomics Website – Resources on how to use ergonomics to improve workplace safety.

Back Pain Treatment

Back pain can be a debilitating problem. If untreated, it can be a constant source of pain for people, making it difficult to work effectively. To reduce or eliminate back pain, people have a number of options depending on the severity of the problems. The treatment options can range from changing the workplace, using proper lifting techniques and using common sense at work to medical treatments such as chiropractic care, massage therapy and even surgery.

• Back Pain Diagnosis and Treatment – Information on how to identify and treat common lower back pain.
• Chronic Back Pain – Treatment and information on back pain that is constantly with people.
• Back Pain Treatment – Information and pain management options for the back.
• Back Pain – Information on chiropractic methods to relieve back and neck pain.
• Back Pain Management – NPR news article with Q&A on back pain management methods.
• Back Pain Fact Sheet – Wide range of information on diagnosis and treatment of back pain.

Dealing with back pain, regardless of the severity, can be very difficult for workers and employers. Employees that have back problems can be less productive and may miss work because of their back. However, proper diagnosis, treatment and back care can alleviate these problems and keep both employee and employer happy.