Abstract
Although vertebrogenic algic syndrome or back pain is a very common disease of multifactorial etiology, epidemiological studies have shown a statistically significant association with certain types of occupational burden. In practice, the contribution of occupational exposure to the development of these conditions is important for two reasons.
First, it may be considered essentially preventable. Second, cases with a significant contribution of occupational etiology may be viewed as occupational diseases for which compensation may be claimed, as is the case in many European Union countries.
In the Czech Republic, however, there is no such possibility. A prerequisite for including these conditions in the list of occupational diseases is development of an objective method for evaluating the contribution of occupational factors to their etiology and determination of clinical criteria for their classification as occupational diseases.