Effect of Ergonomic and Workstyle Risk Factors on Work Related Musculoskeletal Disorders among IT Professionals in India

Abstract

'Workstyle' can be described as a mechanism by which ergonomic and psychosocial risk factors interact to affect the development, exacerbation and/or maintenance of upper limb pain and functional limitations. Workstyle is associated with the increase in the work demand. In today's life use of computer in the workplace is very common and it causes to increase the work demand among the workers who are working with computer. As work demand increase, according to the characteristic of workstyle, risk of the development of musculoskeletal disorders also increased. This study aimed at to findout the association between ergonomics risk factors, workstyle and WRMSD. Two hundred IT professionals participated in this study. Result revealed that most prevalenet body regions were lower back (20%), Upper back (16%) and shoulder (14%). Study result says that there is a positive association between workstyle score with musculoskeletal pain (r=0.85). Also it revealed that posture and regional pain is associated (r=0.62), per day use of computer and musculoskeletal pain (r=0.46), micro breaks and pain (r=0.87) and productivity and the pain (r=0.95). This study further validates these observations and extends support for the assessment of working postures and workstyle behaviors during the design of WMSD treatment.