COMMON OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS - JOB - 2024

The occupational diseases are a diverse group of diseases whose common denominator is the result from employment activity serves; that is, there is a cause-effect relationship between the performance of a certain job and the appearance of the disease.

Since there is a great diversity of jobs and tasks, it is extremely difficult to establish a universal classification of occupational diseases, since each occupation has its own associated risks. For example, the diseases associated with a laboratory technician are very different from those that can be detected in an accountant.

Classification of the International Labor Organization

The International Labor Organization regularly publishes a list of the most common occupational diseases grouped by category.

This list consists of more than 100 types of diseases, classified in a very general way into the following categories:

- Diseases caused by chemical agents.

- Diseases due to physical agents.

- Health problems due to biological causes.

- Skin diseases.

- Pathology of the respiratory tract.

- Cancer derived from occupational exposure.

The general list alone is eight pages long, and only the main categories are mentioned in this list. An extract from the list is detailed below, for reference purposes only:

ILO List of Occupational Diseases (revised 2010)

«1- Occupational diseases caused by exposure to agents that result

from work activities: by chemical agents, by physical agents and biological agents and infectious or parasitic diseases.

2- Occupational diseases according to the affected organ or system: respiratory system, skin, musculoskeletal system and mental and behavioral disorders

3- Professional cancer

4- Other diseases: nystagmus of miners and other specific diseases caused by occupations or processes not mentioned in this list.

In this post, emphasis will only be placed on the most common diseases as well as on a condition that could affect any worker regardless of their occupation: The Professional Burnout Syndrome.

Most common occupational diseases

As already mentioned, the type and frequency of occupational diseases varies markedly depending on the occupation of the person; It is even possible that, for the same occupation, there are different risk profiles depending on the country where you work.

Even so, and in a very general way, it can be said that there is a group of very frequent occupational diseases that can be diagnosed in practically any worker regardless of the activity that is carried out. It is about musculoskeletal diseases.

Although this concept covers a wide spectrum of problems - each one specific to the activity carried out -, when analyzed together, musculoskeletal disorders are by far one of the most common diagnoses in occupational medicine.

In second place are mental disorders, mostly associated to a greater or lesser extent with stress levels related to the activity performed.

Musculoskeletal occupational diseases

Musculoskeletal problems are very common in practically all occupations and professions due to the fact that, to a greater or lesser extent, there is always a certain degree of work-related physical activity.

In this sense, occupational musculoskeletal problems may be due to one of the following situations:

Performing repetitive movements

The first case is very common in manual jobs, such as those carried out by personnel who work on packaging lines. Under these conditions, the same movement is performed over and over again for hours, generating stress and inflammation in the joints.

Over time this leads to the development of tendonitis, tenosynotivitis and bursitis of the joints that perform repetitive motion.

Overload of the musculoskeletal system

On the other hand, in cases of overload of the musculoskeletal system, there are usually forced postures or elevation of loads that damage the musculoskeletal system.

This is very common in maintenance personnel and construction workers, who are sometimes forced to move heavy loads or enter confined and confined spaces where the work posture is unnatural, so to speak.

This results in the stress and overload of certain joints and muscle groups, which in the long run generates various types of musculoskeletal pathology: from muscle tears and strains to tendonitis and even osteoarthritis.

Non-compliance with ergonomic standards

Finally, the cases of non-compliance with ergonomic regulations stand out, which are very frequent in office work. Poor posture, incorrect use of work implements and improper arrangement of the workstation generate various musculoskeletal problems.

These problems are very varied and range from neck pain from inadequate monitor height to carpal tunnel syndrome from inappropriate and repetitive use of the keyboard and other computer user interfaces.

As can be seen, it is a wide range of diseases that affect workers with diametrically opposite occupations; however, most cases can be prevented by implementing proper ergonomic and occupational hygiene measures.

Occupational diseases related to mental disorders

Stress

There is no doubt that every occupation has an intrinsic level of stress. Either due to tight times for the execution of tasks, work overload, attention to the public or great responsibilities associated with the activity, all workers suffer to a greater or lesser extent the effects of stress.

Stress in itself can already be considered a mental alteration since it interferes with the correct actions of the person, not only in the work environment but also in their personal life. Much has been written about minimizing work stress and its impact on the quality of life of workers.

Depression and frustration

In addition to stress, workers are threatened by depression, especially in job applications, isolated or in a hostile environment.

Frustration can also appear in those cases in which a large amount of suffering must be managed (health professionals). Anxiety can also appear, especially in those occupations in which immediate results are expected.

The impact of these conditions is not seen from one day to the next; On the contrary, after years of exposure, the first symptoms appear and, when they do, it is usually very late.

Hence the importance of mental hygiene programs at work in order to avoid the most dangerous mental condition in the workplace: burnout syndrome.

Burnout syndrome

This syndrome is one of the main causes of decreased performance, abandonment of the position and alteration of the quality of life of workers.

Burnout syndrome is understood to be the set of physical and psychological symptoms derived from prolonged and sustained exposure to stress in the workplace.

Its presentation is varied, although it generally includes symptoms such as constant tiredness, lack of motivation to go to work, decreased efficiency, reluctance to perform tasks, muscle aches, nausea and headache (headache).

Over time, they begin to miss work, there is an inexplicable lack of desire for the activities that the person was previously passionate about and eventually they leave work, or their supervisors are forced to disincorporate the worker from their tasks, either due to poor performance or because he puts his life and that of his colleagues at risk.

In most cases the person does not realize that they have this problem, so the help of co-workers and health professionals is essential so that the person becomes aware of the situation and thus can attack it in time.

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