UPDATE ON MEDICAL EXPERT OPINION IN OCCUPATIONAL-DISEASES OF THE SPINE (BK2108)

Necessary precondition for acceptance of spine disorders as occupation al disease is an excessive occupational exposition, its compatibility with and an explicit causal relation to this disorders. The latter may be assumed in case of multisegmental spondylosis of the column, combi ned with local impairment of function and pain, if the vertebral disor ders of the occupationally exposed column-segment are significantly wo rse than those of other vertebral segments. Finally non-occupational, preexisting discrete vertebral disorders (e. g. scoliosis, spondylolis thesis) have to been excluded. So far there are no alternatives or rej ections to this consensus, called ''Hamburg formula''. It should be us ed as long as no other valid, positive markers of occupationally cause d disorders can be defined on the basis of reliable epidemiological in vestigations.