Epidemiological and performance indicators for occupational health services: a feasibility study in Belgium.

Background: In many European countries, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) providers report their activities and results annually. Ideally, this report should offer an overview of their activities and of the outcome regarding occupational health and safety. To establish a set of epidemiological and performance indicators for electronic reporting of data that can be used for OHS surveillance and prevention purposes.

Pain-related fear predicts disability, but not pain severity: a path analytic approach of the fear-avoidance model.

Two studies are reported that tested the fear-avoidance (FA) model using path analytic techniques. In study 1, 429 employees with back pain at baseline and back pain at 18 months follow-up completed questionnaires assessing sociodemographic information, pain severity, negative affect, pain-related fear, and disability. Results indicated that pain severity at baseline predicted pain-related fear and disability at follow-up, and that pain-related fear is rather a consequence than an antecedent of pain severity.

Work-related Helicobacter pylori infection among sewage workers in municipal wastewater treatment plants in Belgium.

Introduction: Most studies among sewage workers of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have found a higher prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms than among non-sewage exposed workers. Waterborne transmission of Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) has been hypothesised, as the bacteria can survive into an aqueous environment and has been detected in sewage. A health and hygiene questionnaire has demonstrated a higher prevalence of peptic ulcers among Belgian WWTP operators and maintenance workers than among non-sewage exposed colleagues.

Physical characteristics of the back are not predictive of low back pain in healthy workers: a prospective study.

Background: In the working population, back disorders are an important reason for sick leave and permanent work inability. In the context of fitting the job to the worker, one of the primary tasks of the occupational health physician is to evaluate the balance between work-related and individual variables. Since this evaluation of work capacity often consists of a physical examination of the back, the objective of this study was to investigate whether a physical examination of the low back, which is routinely performed in occupational medicine, predicts the development of low back pain (LBP).

The prevalence and characteristics of migraine among the Belgian working population.

Introduction: Migraine is a very common disease. For the first time in Belgium, a study has been set up to assess some characteristics of the migraine problem like occurrence, frequency, duration, in a convenience sample of employees.

Methods And Study Population: A total of 1660 persons participated in the study.

European survey on training objectives in disaster medicine.

Objectives: As part of the I SEE (Interactive Simulation Exercise for Emergencies) project, financially supported by the Leonardo da Vinci Programme 2000-2006 of the European Commission, a study was planned to assess the type of disaster and to establish the tasks to be included in an emergency exercise to be developed, according to the possible target groups, physicians, nurses, ambulance personnel, dispatchers and first responders. A secondary objective was a description of the actual computer-based training situation in the training centres. A study involving different actors or target groups has not yet been conducted.

Helicobacter pylori infection: further evidence for the role of feco-oral transmission.

Background: Helicobacter pylori infection is recognized as a major cause of chronic digestive diseases with a major public health impact, yet the knowledge of transmission pathways is limited. We studied the transmission in employees taking care of institutionalized persons with mental disabilities with a documented high prevalence of H. pylori.

Validation of a self-administered questionnaire for assessing exposure to back pain mechanical risk factors.

Objective: To validate a self-administered questionnaire assessing exposure to mechanical risk factors, developed for a cohort study aiming at assessing the influence of physical and psycho-social factors on the incidence of low back pain (LBP).

Methods: The study first involved a criterion validity test. A sample of the cohort workers (n=152) was observed at the workplace during four 30 min periods randomly distributed along the shift.