Occupational Diseases of Construction Industry

Young Jun Kwon

doi:10.7599/hmr.2010.30.4.290

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Kwon: Occupational Diseases of Construction Industry

Review Article

Hanyang Medical Reviews

Hanyang Medical Reviews 2010; 30(4): 290-295.

Published online: 30 November 2010

DOI: https://doi.org/10.7599/hmr.2010.30.4.290

Occupational Diseases of Construction Industry

Young Jun Kwon, M.D., Ph.D.

Department of Occupational Medicine, Hallym University Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul, Korea.

Corresponding author (kwon5966@hallym.ac.kr)

Received 2 September 2010 Accepted 3 October 2010

(open-access):

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Construction is consistently ranked among the most dangerous occupations. In the Korea, 28% of all fatal on-the-job injuries occur in construction. Occupational diseases are also an important cause of morbidity in construction workers. This article reviews the medical literatures on common occupational diseases in construction industry: work-related musculoskeletal disorders, noise-induced hearing loss, lead poisoning, occupational lung diseases. Construction is a complex industry, involving many trades and employers on any single project. Because of that complexity, research and prevention activities have targeted construction less frequently than general industry, even though the need is great. These circumstances leave the industry with much room for improvement. The next decade should bring great improvement in health and safety in this industry.

Keywords: Construction industry, Occupational disease, Hazardous materials

Figures and Tables

Table 1

The Distribution of Occupational Diseases in 2008 (unit: persons (%))

Source: Ministry of Labor. Annual report on industrial accident. 2008. Ministry of Labor Korea Government

Table 2

Key Disorders and Associated Work Postures or Trades

Table 3

Asbestosis and Lung Cancer Proportionate Mortality Ratios (PMRs) in Construction, Selected Occupations, 1990~199932

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