Association of Visual Display Terminal Usage with Self-Rated Health and Psychological Distress among Japanese Office Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Yu Par Khin,Takeo Fujiwara,Yusuke Matsuyama,Takahiro Tabuchi

doi:10.3390/ijerph18179406

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the association of the duration of visual display terminal (VDT) usage for work and non-work activities with self-rated health (SRH) and psychological distress among office workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. A cross-sectional data of 7088 office workers from a web-based, self-administered survey conducted from 25 August 2020, to 30 September 2020, was used. Multiple logistic regression analysis was applied. Compared to those who used a VDT for 4–9 h for work, office workers who used a VDT for ≥10 h for work had poor SRH (odds ratio (OR): 1.65; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13, 2.41) and severe psychological distress (OR: 2.23; 95% CI: 1.52, 3.28). VDT usage for less than 1 h (OR: 1.37, 95% CI: 1.12, 1.67) and 1–3 h (OR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.12, 1.80) for work were also associated with severe psychological distress. Stratification analysis by age showed a significant association of VDT usage for work with poor SRH among 30–64-year-olds, while a U-shape association was found between VDT usage for work and psychological distress with the younger age group (15–29 years old). During the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, the prolonged usage of VDT for work can deteriorate both general and psychological health, while moderate usage of VDT for work can reduce psychological distress.

Highlights

The new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first detected in December 2019 and has since spread across the world
A Japanese study proved that visual display terminal (VDT) usage of more than 5 h was associated with poor mental health among administrative workers [7]
To focus on office workers, students (n = 1751), retirees (n = 1065), housewives (n = 4197), unemployed people (n = 3015), those who had jobs that required interacting with people (n = 3793), manual laborers (n = 4163), and those who were absent for the main exposure variable (n = 410) were excluded, so that the samples were eligible for the present study’s purpose, which was to determine the association of VDT usage and health among Japanese office workers

Summary

Introduction

The new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first detected in December 2019 and has since spread across the world. Has recommended non-pharmacological measures to control the spread of the infection [1], and such measures were launched in Japan on 25 February 2020. These policies, including social distancing and encouraging telework, have brought significant changes to society [2]. Studies in Japan and elsewhere have shown that, during the lockdown or relevant measures such as limiting social outings and events, daily average screen time has increased [4,5] as well as VDT usage and screen time for work [3,6]. VDT usage and length of screen time have been associated with poor self-rated health and psychological distress even before the COVID-19 pandemic. A Canadian study reported that limited screen time improved general and mental health during lockdown [4], while increased screen time had been associated with an increased risk of depression, stress, and loneliness

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