OCCUPATIONAL UPPER-EXTREMITY-RELATED DISABILITY - DEMOGRAPHIC, PHYSICAL, AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS

Occupational upper-extremity disorders have been associated with prolo nged pain and work disability. Using the U.S. Army Physical Disability Agency database, the present case-control studies (n = 434 and n = 34 2) investigated the contribution of demographic, physical, occupationa l psychosocial, and individual psychosocial factors to work disability in soldiers with upper-extremity disorders. Age (odds ratio [OR] = 1. 11), rank (private E-2: OR = 3.79; private first class: OR = 4.39; spe cialist or corporal: OR = 2.17), ethnic group (white: OR = 1.54), and occupational stress (''often'': OR = 2.46) mere found to predict disab ility. The results highlight the importance of occupational stress as a predictor of disability and the potential utility of addressing this factor in the development of empirically based disability prevention strategies. This investigation also emphasizes the need for research t hat delineates the biobehavioral mechanisms linking occupational stres s to prolonged symptoms and subsequent work disability.