It will come as no surprise to many readers that low back pain is a common and sometimes disabling health problem that affects millions of working age Americans. Agricultural producers engage in many activities that can lead to back pain, and this condition is believed to be widespread among farmers and farm workers.
Nate Fethke, an ergonomist at the University of Iowa, wanted to know just how many agricultural producers are affected by low back pain and conducted a survey of over 500 farmers.
The results of the survey were a bit surprising. Half of the farmers responding to the questionnaire reported experiencing a recent episode of low back pain severe enough to affect their ability to work.
Roughly half of the farmers reporting low back pain sought medical care for it.
The farmers in Dr. Fethke’s study were a lot like most farmers — on average, they were 60 years old, four out of five were farm owner/operators, and most had been farming for many decades. Most were overweight.
For people with low back pain and for the health care providers who care for them, the condition can be hard to manage.
The good news is the majority of episodes of low back pain are temporary and don’t lead to more severe back problems.
FOR OTHERWISE healthy people, recovery from mild or moderate back pain usually requires only minor activity limitation.
Unless pain is severe, bed rest often makes things worse. It is best to engage in regular activities but avoid heavy lifting and intense physical exertion until pain has improved.
For people who tolerate over-the counter-pain medicine, ibuprofen and acetaminophen can help relieve minor pain.
Most of the time, special radiology tests such as CT scans and MRI scans are unhelpful and can even result in unnecessary treatment.
On rare occasions, back pain may be the result of serious, but undiscovered illness.
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This is especially true for people with long-term illness such as diabetes, cancer, excessive alcohol use, or medical treatments that can affect the immune system (e.g., steroids).
YOUR DOCTOR or other health care provider should be able to separate more serious causes of back pain from those that will get better on their own.
If you have low back pain for more than a few weeks, get it checked out to be sure nothing more serious is causing it.
If you have severe pain, fever or weakness in the legs, see your health care provider immediately to prevent serious complications.
Some episodes of back pain are the result of exposure to hazards on the job.
Heavy lifting, bending and twisting of the back can lead to back pain. Spending time on the seat of a moving tractor or combine also causes back pain.
Because we know some causes of back pain, we also know that it can sometimes be prevented. Most importantly, don’t use your back as if it were a crane or hoist.
Whenever possible, use mechanical lifting equipment. Most farms have a skid steer loader, end loader or other mechanical lifting equipment. Let the machine do the heavy work. If you must lift something without mechanical assistance, get help and share the load.
BECAUSE SITTING on a bouncing seat can cause low back pain, consider seating options designed to reduce vibration when making major equipment purchases.
Finally, many of us can benefit from the loss of a few pounds. Lowering our body weight to healthy levels and maintaining aerobic fitness also minimizes the risk of low back pain.
Visit http://www.public-health.uiowa.edu/GPCAH/ to learn more about our efforts to protect the health and safety of agricultural workers or to request information.
Fred Gerr is an occupational medicine physician and director of the Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health at the University of Iowa. Nate Fethke is an assistant professor at The University of Iowa conducting research on musculoskeletal disorders among farmers. For more information, contact them at 319-335-4405 or fred-gerr@uiowa.edu or nathan-fethke@uiowa.edu.