Prevalence and factors associated with low back pain among tea plantation workers in Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

A cross sectional study was conducted among tea plantation workers in Cameron Highlands from July to December 2006 to study the prevalence of low back pain and factors associated with it. One hundred and six tea plantation field workers participated in the study. Data was collected using self-administered questionnaire. Time motion studies were also conducted for 3 different job categories. The prevalence of back pain experienced throughout their work in the plantation was 81.1% and the prevalence of low back pain experienced in the past 12 months was 64.2%. Feeling the need to work as fast as possible was a significant predictor of low back pain and increased the risk by 3.5 times, therefore it is suggested that both the management and workers give serious attention to this particular aspect to reduce the incidence of low back pain