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The European Journal of Public Health 2000 10(2):127-132; doi:10.1093/eurpub/10.2.127
© 2000 by European Journal of Public Health
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OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

Economic consequences of occupational disorders in women with repetitive industrial work

ANDERS NORLUND1, BIRGITTA PÅLSSON2,, KERSTINA OHLSSON2 and STAFFAN SKERFVING2

1Malmõhus County Council Lund, Sweden
2Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital Lund, Sweden

Correspondence: Birgitta Pålsson, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital, S-221 85 Lund, Sweden, tel. +46 46 173174, fax +46 46 173180

Background: In a previous study, we found a three to four times increase in sick listing and disability pensioning among 269 women in industrial repetitive work, as compared to 290 referent women in varied work. Methods: Here, by using an economic model, we estimated the costs for society of the work-environment dysfunctions in the industrial group. Results: The costs for disability pensions in the exposed group were 38.8 kSEK per person year at risk and for sick-leave 27.2 kSEK per person year, while the direct costs for health care were 2.2 kSEK per person year. Among referents, the sums were much lower: 5.6 kSEK per person year for disability pensions and 7.9 kSEK per person year for sick-leave and costs for health care were 0.9 kSEK per person year. The costs (losses in production) per person year of employment were 4.7 times higher for the exposed women than for the referents. The difference was 53, 800 SEK (1 ECU = 8.74 SEK), of which disability pensioning was 62%, sick-leave 35% and healthcare 3%. The actual transfers in the social insurance system corresponded to 45.1 MSEK among the exposed workers, as compared to 9.1 MSEK for the referents. Conclusions: Repetitive industrial work results in huge costs. Hence, preventive and other measures are needed.

Keywords: disability pensioning, epidemiology, health economics, repetitive industrial work, sick-leave


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