Journal of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences

Background and Objective: Musculoskeletal disorders are one of the most important causes of disability and absenteeism in the world. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders among university office workers.

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done with a census appproach on 400 employees of administrative systems at Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences in 2012. Data was collected based on Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire in three sections: the first section included demographic characteristics, the second section included identifying the 9 areas of the body which can cause musculoskeletal problems and the third section included additional questions relating to 9 areas of the body. Data ware analyzed using t-test and chi-square and Binary Logistic Regression.

Results: Two hundred and sixty six (66.5%) of participants reported musculoskeletal symptoms during the past 12 months and had felt pain and inconvenience in at least one of the 9 areas of the body. The highest prevalence of pain was found in the areas of neck (32.3%) and lower back (32.3%) and the lowest prevalence of pain was in the areas of foot/ankle (6.5%) and elbow (7%). Musculoskeletal disorders of the upper (p=0.028) and lower (p=0.001) limbs were significantly higher in women than in men. Prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders increased in people with more than 5 years of work history (p= 0.011) and lower job satisfaction (p=0.024).

Conclusion: This study showed that women, with low job satisfaction and more than 5 years work history were strongly associated with musculoskeletal disorders. Therefore, paying more attention to these people can play an important role to decrease disorder among university office workers.

Key words: Musculoskeletal disorders, Nordic questionnaire, University office workers

Funding: This research was funded by Research Committee of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences.

Conflict of interest: None declared.

Ethical approval: The Ethics Committee of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences approved the study.

How to cite this article: Gorgi Z, Assadollahi Z, Ghaffarian A, Rezaeian M. The Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders in the Employees of Office Systems at Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences in 2012. J Rafsanjan Univ Med Sci 2014 12(12): 991-1002. [Farsi]