Injuries, arthritis, and hearing impairment: A case study of chronic health problems among western coal miners

Abstract

Coal mining has been, and continues to be, a hazardous occupation with some of the highest rates of death and injury. The authors conducted a study of former and current coal miners from the western United States to identify the prevalence of acute injuries as well as arthritis and hearing impairment. Of the 102 randomly selected miners, 69 (67.6%) had experienced one or more injuries during their mining careers, with back injuries the most often identified. Thirty‐eight (37.3%) reported currently suffering health‐related quality of life effects from one or more injuries, including pain and activity restrictions. Forty‐four (43.1%) identified arthritis and 60 (58.8%) reported hearing impairment. These results were higher than national data for the general population of the United States when controlling for age. Based upon respondent‐reported health status, the miners identified themselves as being in poorer overall health compared with national data and a control group from the same study area. The need for longitudinal studies of chronic health conditions among miners is recommended, and prevention and treatment policy concerns are discussed.

Keywords:

• arthritis
• chronic health problems
• coal
• health policy
• hearing impairment
• injuries
• mine
• quality of life
• work