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Back pain and its consequences among Polish Air Force pilots flying high performance aircraft.
Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2014 Apr; 27(2):243-51.IJ

Abstract

OBJECTIVES

Back pain in Air Force fast jet pilots has been studied by several air forces and found to be relatively common. The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence and degree of the pain intensity in the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine, subjective risk factors and their effect on the pilots' performance while flying high maneuver aircrafts and the consequences for cognitive deficiencies.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The study was designed as a retrospective, anonymous questionnaire survey, collecting data on the age, aircraft type, flying hours, pain characteristics, physical activity, etc. The study was participated by 94 pilots aged 28-45 years (mean age: 35.9 ± 3.3 years), actively flying fast jet aircrafts Su-22, Mig-29 and F-16. The estimates regarding the level of the subjective back pain were established using visual analogue scales (VAS).

RESULTS

The values of the Cochran and Cox T-test for heterogeneous variances are as follows: for the total number of flying hours: F = 2.53, p = 0.0145, for the pilot's age: F = 3.15, p = 0.003, and for the BMI factor F = 2.73, p = 0.008.

CONCLUSIONS

Our questionnaire survey showed a significant problem regarding spinal conditions in high performance aircraft pilots. The determination of the risk factors may lead to solving this problem and help eliminate the effect of the unfavorable environment on piloting jet aircrafts. Experiencing back pain during the flight might influence the mission performance and flight safety. The costs of pilots education are enormous and inability to fly, or even disability, leads to considerable economic loss. More research on specific prevention strategies is warranted in order to improve the in-flight working environment of fighter pilots.

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Publisher Full Text (DOI)

Authors+Show Affiliations

Truszczyńska A
Faculty of Rehabilitation, Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education, Warszawa, Poland, aleksandra.rapala@wp.pl.
Lewkowicz R
No affiliation info available
Truszczyński O
No affiliation info available
Wojtkowiak M
No affiliation info available

MeSH

AdultAerospace MedicineAircraftAttentionBack PainCognitionHumansMiddle AgedMilitary PersonnelPain MeasurementPolandPrevalenceRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsSeverity of Illness IndexTime Factors

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article

Language

eng

PubMed ID

24643744

Citation

Truszczyńska, Aleksandra, et al. "Back Pain and Its Consequences Among Polish Air Force Pilots Flying High Performance Aircraft." International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, vol. 27, no. 2, 2014, pp. 243-51.
Truszczyńska A, Lewkowicz R, Truszczyński O, et al. Back pain and its consequences among Polish Air Force pilots flying high performance aircraft. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2014;27(2):243-51.
Truszczyńska, A., Lewkowicz, R., Truszczyński, O., & Wojtkowiak, M. (2014). Back pain and its consequences among Polish Air Force pilots flying high performance aircraft. International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, 27(2), 243-51. https://doi.org/10.2478/s13382-014-0254-z
Truszczyńska A, et al. Back Pain and Its Consequences Among Polish Air Force Pilots Flying High Performance Aircraft. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2014;27(2):243-51. PubMed PMID: 24643744.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
TY - JOUR T1 - Back pain and its consequences among Polish Air Force pilots flying high performance aircraft. AU - Truszczyńska,Aleksandra, AU - Lewkowicz,Rafał, AU - Truszczyński,Olaf, AU - Wojtkowiak,Mieczysław, Y1 - 2014/03/19/ PY - 2013/09/04/received PY - 2014/02/19/accepted PY - 2014/3/20/entrez PY - 2014/3/20/pubmed PY - 2015/8/27/medline SP - 243 EP - 51 JF - International journal of occupational medicine and environmental health JO - Int J Occup Med Environ Health VL - 27 IS - 2 N2 - OBJECTIVES: Back pain in Air Force fast jet pilots has been studied by several air forces and found to be relatively common. The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence and degree of the pain intensity in the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine, subjective risk factors and their effect on the pilots' performance while flying high maneuver aircrafts and the consequences for cognitive deficiencies. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was designed as a retrospective, anonymous questionnaire survey, collecting data on the age, aircraft type, flying hours, pain characteristics, physical activity, etc. The study was participated by 94 pilots aged 28-45 years (mean age: 35.9 ± 3.3 years), actively flying fast jet aircrafts Su-22, Mig-29 and F-16. The estimates regarding the level of the subjective back pain were established using visual analogue scales (VAS). RESULTS: The values of the Cochran and Cox T-test for heterogeneous variances are as follows: for the total number of flying hours: F = 2.53, p = 0.0145, for the pilot's age: F = 3.15, p = 0.003, and for the BMI factor F = 2.73, p = 0.008. CONCLUSIONS: Our questionnaire survey showed a significant problem regarding spinal conditions in high performance aircraft pilots. The determination of the risk factors may lead to solving this problem and help eliminate the effect of the unfavorable environment on piloting jet aircrafts. Experiencing back pain during the flight might influence the mission performance and flight safety. The costs of pilots education are enormous and inability to fly, or even disability, leads to considerable economic loss. More research on specific prevention strategies is warranted in order to improve the in-flight working environment of fighter pilots. SN - 1896-494X UR - https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/24643744/Back_pain_and_its_consequences_among_Polish_Air_Force_pilots_flying_high_performance_aircraft_ DB - PRIME DP - Unbound Medicine ER -