Developing common metrics of mechanical exposures across aetiological studies of low back pain in working populations for use in meta-analysis

OBJECTIVES: One of the challenges of conducting meta-analyses on the relationship between workplace mechanical exposures and low back pain is that mechanical exposures are reported in a wide variety of ways. We aimed to develop common metrics to apply in the translation of literature-based workplace mechanical exposures for use in meta-analyses, and to test the metrics' measurement properties. METHODS: We developed a set of 7-point scales to …