Sa Moussavi Najarkola.
Application of the strain index (SI) method for the evaluation of risk factors featuring distal upper extremity (DUE) musculoskeletal disorders in a textile factory.
Pak J Med Health Sci Jan ;2(2):42-5.

The upper limb musuloskeletal disorders are a significant problem with respect to ill health and associated costs within the workplace; therefore, in order to protect workers from such disorders, there is a need to evaluate work situations and use the strain index method for the assessment of risk factors presented in different industries. For this, the strain index (SI) method and Nordic Musuloskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) were used. The research has been carried out in a major textile factory located in Qaemshahre, Mazandaran. All 320 male workers occupying in 8 various jobs (137 different tasks) were surveyed. The Results showed that the highest percents of inducing elbow, forearm, wrist, and hand disorders were allocated to the weaving job that were obtained 7.19%, 8.75%, 10.31%, and 11.56% correspondingly. On the other hand, there was a significant relationship between eight corresponding jobs and incidence rate of the upper limb disorders (?2=4.39,P=0.002). Also means of strain indices between eight various jobs include: administrative (1.09), engineering room (1.26), primary of spinning (7.52), spinning (6.03) primary of weaving (8.18), weaving (8.18), weaving designing (3.74), and cloth meter (4.25) showed a significant different (F=7.33,P=0.005). Thereby administrative and engineering room jobs were located in safe level, weaving designing and cloth meter jobs were lain in uncertain level, spinning and primary of weaving of weaving jobs were posed in some risk level, weaving and primary of spinning jobs were lain in hazardous level. So SI can be used as an useful and applicable method for a textile factory.

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