J Korean Med Sci.  2010 Dec;25(Suppl):S77-S86. 10.3346/jkms.2010.25.S.S77.

Characteristics of Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Korea and Their Work-relatedness Evaluation

• Kim KH
• Kim KS
• Kim DS
• Jang SJ
• Hong KH
• Yoo SW

• KMID: 1714071
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2010.25.S.S77

Abstract

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) can be compensated through the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act. We looked at the characteristics of WMSDs in worker's compensation records and the epidemiological investigation reports from the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute (OSHRI). Based on the records of compensation, the number of cases for WMSDs decreased from 4,532 in 2003 to 1,954 in 2007. However the proportion of WMSDs among the total approved occupational diseases increased from 49.6% in 2003 to 76.5% in 2007, and the total cost of WMSDs increased from 105.3 billion won in 2004 to 163.3 billion won in 2007. The approval rate of WMSDs by the OSHRI accounted for 65.6%. Ergonomic and clinical characteristics were associated with the approval rate; however, the degenerative changes had a minimal affect. This result was in discordance between OSHRI and the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service. We presumed that there were perceptional gaps in work-relatedness interpretation that resulted from the inequality of information in ergonomic analyses. We propose to introduce ergonomic analysis to unapproved WMSDs cases and discuss those results among experts that will be helpful to form a consensus among diverse groups.

Keyword

Musculoskeletal Diseases; Workplace; Low Back Pain; Upper Extremity; Risk Factors

MeSH Terms

Accidents, Occupational
Adult
Cumulative Trauma Disorders
Female
Human Engineering
Humans
Low Back Pain
Male
Middle Aged
*Musculoskeletal Diseases
*Occupational Diseases
Republic of Korea
Risk Factors
*Workers' Compensation/economics/trends

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