SynthesisInternational archives of occupational and environmental health2018
The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms in the construction industry: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in International archives of occupational and environmental health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 133 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial of a Total Worker HealthInternational journal of environmental research and public health · 2018Trial
- Cardiovascular load and physical capacity in older workers engaged in physically demanding occupations.International archives of occupational and environmental health · 2025Article
- Sex difference in musculoskeletal disabilities among Korean fishers: a cross-sectional study.Annals of occupational and environmental medicine · 2025Article
- Development of a Passive Back-Support Exoskeleton Mimicking Human Spine Motion for Multi-Posture Assistance in Occupational Tasks.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Article
- Worker health and well-being in Ontario's electrical sector: a quantitative study of occupational health outcomes.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Effect of diabetes mellitus on physical function in patients with osteoarthritis: a cross-sectional observational study.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2025Observational
- Assessment of Muscle Activity During a Deadlift Performed by Construction Workers.Muscles (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Analysis of musculoskeletal pains and productivity impacts among hispanic construction workers.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Influence of brick laying height on biomechanical load in masons: Cross-sectional field study with technical measurements.Work (Reading, Mass.) · 2024Article
- Work conditions and determinants of health status among industrial shift workers: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Validation of a modified visual analogue scale to measure user-perceived comfort of a lower-limb exoskeleton.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Musculoskeletal disorders and incongruous postures in workers on ropes: A pilot study.Journal of public health research · 2023Article
- Feasibility Analysis of Using Channel State Information (CSI) Acquired from Wi-Fi Routers for Construction Worker Fall Detection.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- A Health-Impact Assessment of an Ergonomic Measure to Reduce the Risk of Work-Related Lower Back Pain, Lumbosacral Radicular Syndrome and Knee Osteoarthritis among Floor Layers in The Netherlands.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Classifying hazardous movements and loads during manual materials handling using accelerometers and instrumented insoles.Applied ergonomics · 2022Article
- Exoworkathlon: A prospective study approach for the evaluation of industrial exoskeletons.Wearable technologies · 2022Article
- Fraction and Number of Unemployed Associated with Self-Reported Low Back Pain: A Nation-Wide Cross-Sectional Study in Japan.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Long working hours and psychiatric treatment: A Danish follow-up study.Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeAlthough individual studies have reported high prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms (MSS) among construction workers, no systematic review has summarized their prevalence rates. Accordingly, this systematic review/meta-analysis aimed to synthesize MSS prevalence in different construction trades, gender and age groups, which may help develop specific ergonomic interventions.
methodsNine databases were searched for articles related to the research objective. Two reviewers independently screened citations, extracted information and conducted quality assessment of the included studies. Meta-analyses were conducted on clinical and statistical homogenous data.
resultsThirty-five out of 1130 potential citations were included reporting diverse types of period prevalence and case definitions. Only the 1-year prevalence rates of MSS (defined as at least one episode of pain/MSS in the last year) at nine anatomical regions had sufficient homogeneous data for meta-analysis. Specifically, the 1-year prevalence of MSS was 51.1% for lower back, 37.2% for knee, 32.4% for shoulder, 30.4% for wrist, 24.4% for neck, 24.0% for ankle/foot, 20.3% for elbow, 19.8% for upper back, and 15.1% for hip/thigh. Female workers demonstrated a higher prevalence of MSS while there was insufficient information on the prevalence of trade-specific or age-related MSS. The quality assessments revealed that many included studies estimated prevalence solely based on self-reported data, and did not report non-respondents' characteristics.
conclusionsLumbar, knee, shoulder, and wrist MSS are the most common symptoms among construction workers. Future studies should standardize the reporting of period prevalence of MSS in different construction trades to allow meta-analyses and to develop relevant MSS prevention program.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.