Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
- 15th May 2017
- 0 Comment (s)
What are MSDs?
These "diseases" specific to our time are disorders of the musculoskeletal system, that is to say of the lower and upper limbs. These MSDs appear following repetitive professional activity. The TMS mainly affect muscles, tendons and nerves or in other words all soft tissue. Most of the time, the areas of the body affected are the neck, shoulders, back and wrists. The lower limbs are much less affected by musculoskeletal problems and it is the knees which are in this case concerned.
Low back pain, patellar tendonitis, epicondylitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, tenosynovitis tendonitis… These are MSDs. The symptoms are the same for everyone. They are expressed by pain and stiffness in the affected area. But also clumsiness and loss of strength in the limb in question; Regardless of their location, we must act quickly because they can become irreversible and cause lasting disability.
MSDs of the lower limbs must be prevented by wearing shoes adapted to the activity and plantar morphology of the employee. It is for this reason that Nord'Ways puts all its energy into making ergonomic and comfortable shoes. Shoes that effectively protect employees from all risks and injuries. The work shoes Nord'Ways are studied and tested to meet the greatest number of requirements and needs.
Musculoskeletal disorders are the most common recognized diseases in society.
In constant increase, they can be explained by the combination of multiple causes. Linked to the workstation and its environment, to the organization of work and to the social climate in society. The increase in productivity constraints, the intensification of work in a context of an aging working population can at least partly explain the increase in cases of MSD among working people over the past 20 years.
MSDs can be costly for the business.
A source of work disorganization, MSDs can lower the performance of the company. Reducing the productivity rate, the quality of production, etc. Solutions must be put in place to reduce the appearance of MSDs. And thus improve the quality of working life of employees.
How to prevent the onset of MSDs:
In order to put in place a risk prevention strategy in your company, all stakeholders must be involved. It is therefore necessary to rely on 9 main principles of the labor code (source INRS):
- To avoid risks is to eliminate the danger or the exposure to the danger.
- Evaluating the risks means appreciating the exposure to danger and the importance of the risk in order to prioritize the preventive actions to be carried out.
- Combating risks at source means integrating prevention as early as possible, particularly from the design of workplaces, equipment or operating methods.
- Adapt work to humans, taking into account interindividual differences, with the aim of reducing the effects of work on health.
- Taking account of technical developments means adapting prevention to technical and organizational developments.
- Replacing what is dangerous by what is less is to avoid the use of dangerous processes or products when the same result can be obtained with a method presenting less dangers.
- Planning prevention by integrating technique, organization and working conditions, social relations and the environment.
- Give priority to collective protection measures: Use personal protective equipment only in addition to collective protection if it turns out to be insufficient.
- Giving appropriate instructions to employees: This means training and informing employees so that they know the risks and preventive measures.