Abstract:
Work-related musculoskeletal disorder (WRMSDs) is a painful or disabling injury to the muscles, tendons or nerves caused or aggravated by work. Ethiopia is one of the countries in which industries especially textile industry is growing up and at the same time information on frequency and causes of WRMSDs is minimal.
Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of work related back, shoulder and neck musculoskeletal disorders and associated factors among Almeda textile factory workers, Adwa, North Ethiopia.
Method: An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted from March to April, 2015. A total of 624 study subjects were included in this study. Structured questionnaire derived from Nordic Standard Musculoskeletal Questionnaire and literature reviews was used to collect data through face to face interview. The data was entered by Epi Info 3.5.1 and analyzed using SPSS version 16. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify the degree of association using odds ratio with 95% CI.
Results: From a total of 624 study subjects included in the study, 618(99%) responded to the interview. From a total of 618 of workers participated in the study 433(70.1%) were females and 432 (64.4%) were in the age group of 25-33 years. The prevalence of self-reported back, shoulder and neck WRMSDs among production workers in the past 12-months were, 53.1%, 38.2% and 29.3%, respectively. Sex, age, years of service, not practicing physical activity, unavailability of adjustable chair, work load and poor light are factors that increase the risk of developing back pain. Not practicing roper sitting, work load, poor light and low job satisfaction are the factors that cause shoulder disorders. Repetitive work and frequent twisting are the determinants for developing neck disorder.
Conclusion and recommendation: the prevalence of back, shoulder and neck musculoskeletal disorders among production workers was high. Therefore, special attention is requires from government and the factory to alleviate this problem through proper occupational health and safety policy implementation
