A correction factor for estimating statewide agricultural injuries from ambulance reports.

Purpose: Agriculture ranks as one of the most hazardous industries in the nation. Agricultural injury surveillance is critical to identifying and reducing major injury hazards. Currently, there is no comprehensive system of identifying and characterizing fatal and serious non-fatal agricultural injuries.

Laboratory evaluation of belt usage with apple buckets.

Background: Migrant and seasonal orchard harvest workers experience musculoskeletal strain caused by carrying heavy loads and holding awkward postures. An ergonomic hip belt designed to redistribute weight from the upper back, neck, and shoulders to the hips was evaluated.

Methods: A comparison of muscle exertion (using electromyography [EMG]) of four key back and shoulder muscles and shoulder surface pressure (using a surface pressure sensor [PS]) was made among 10 laboratory volunteers under intervention and control conditions, in two postures (standing erect [0 degrees ]) and flexed [45 degrees ]).

New York State child agricultural injuries: how often is maturity a potential contributing factor?

Background: Children living or working on New York farms face unique hazards and experience on-farm injuries related to these. The New York Community Partners for Healthy Farming (CPHF) surveillance provided a unique source of information for analyses of risk factors-particularly age-for these events.

Methods: Agricultural injuries recorded by the state's agricultural nurse surveillance (CPHF) program over a 6-year period were analyzed.