Abstract
BackgroundThe aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of self-reported musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) among Polish territorial army soldiers during the COVID-19 pandemic and to investigate whether there was a relationship between occupational physical activity (OPA), leisure time physical activity (LTPA), and MSD.MethodsThe study used a cross-sectional design with a sample of 373 territorial army soldiers ages 18–55 who had not previously suffered from COVID-19 and were not convalescents. The symptoms prevalence data was collected using the standardized Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire. OPA and LTPA data was collected using the Seven-Day Physical Activity Recall (SDPAR).ResultsThe OPA, LTPA, and total physical activity (PA) among the studied soldiers was very diverse and the mean level of PA was relatively high. A total of 56 and 40% of territorial army soldiers had experienced pain or other discomfort in one or more of nine body regions during the past 12 months and during the past 7 days, respectively. The most common MSD among Polish territorial army soldiers were low back pain, followed by pain in the neck and knees.ConclusionsThe study revealed that the OPA of the studied soldiers, especially vigorous-intensity and high vigorous-intensity OPA, was associated with a higher prevalence of MSD in several regions of the body, i.e. the lower back, elbows, wrists or hands, hips or thighs, and ankles or feet. Along with the increase in energy expenditure on total PA, a greater percentage of respondents experienced low back pain. Vigorous and high vigorous-intensity PA may contribute to the occurrence of MSD.
Highlights
The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of self-reported musculoskeletal disorders among male and female territorial army soldiers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to investigate whether there was a relationship between occupational physical activity, leisure time physical activity, and MSD
Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) contains a view of the human body imaged from the back and separated into the nine anatomical localizations which may be affected by musculoskeletal disorders
The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of self-reported MSD among male and female territorial army soldiers during the COVID-19 pandemic and to investigate whether there was a relationship between occupational physical activity (OPA), leisure time physical activity (LTPA), and MSD
Summary
The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of self-reported musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) among Polish territorial army soldiers during the COVID-19 pandemic and to investigate whether there was a relationship between occupational physical activity (OPA), leisure time physical activity (LTPA), and MSD. Prolonged sitting and insufficient physical activity (PA) may lead to a high risk of MSD. Emerging studies have shown that this effect differs depending on the domain of the PA [9], i.e. occupational physical activity (OPA), household PA, active transport, and LTPA. Several studies have demonstrated that OPA is not beneficial for health due to its too low intensity, too long duration, static and constrained postures, and insufficient recovery time [10, 11]. Based on WHO recommendations, a longer duration of moderateintensity PA leads to achieving the same health benefits as shorter durations of vigorous-intensity PA [13]
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