work related injuries in an oil field in oman

 Objectives: The aim of this paper is to describe the epidemiology of occupational injuries in the Harweel oil field, Oman.Methods: The study is based on data gathered from a computerized database maintained by Petroleum Development of Oman (PDO). All non-fatal work-related occupational injuries registered between April 2007 and December 2009 were gathered and analyzed.Results: A total of 170 work-related injuries were reported during the study period. Foreign body to the eye was the most common type of injury (27.6�20encountered among all injuries, followed by man falls/slips (11.8� Injury to the upper extremities accounted for the largest percentage (38.8�20among other body parts. While, a significant portion of the injuries (52�20affected workers aged less than 30 years. The average injury rate per 1000 exposed workers per year was 19.8.Conclusion: The study outlines the types of injuries most commonly encountered in the oil field in Oman. Additional data is required in order to devise proper epidemiological analysis. Establishing a comprehensive surveillance system for injuries is essential to ascertain factors influencing such injuries.