Abstract
Studies on work-related musculoskeletal symptoms (WRMSs) have been conducted mainly on different types of workforce but not many on low-skilled workers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary exercise program in decreasing the number of body parts with WRMSs for low-skilled workers. This study used a repeated-measures, single-group design. One hundred and five (105) workers participated in eight weekly 90-min sessions (including 45-min workshops and 45-min exercises) in low-income community settings. The exercise program involved a 21-movement stretching exercise and a 10-movement muscle-strengthening exercise. Questionnaire and health-assessment data were collected at the baseline (N = 105) and immediately after the 8-week program (n = 86). The average age of the 105 participants was 50.5 ± 8.7 years (ranging from 31 to 67). Over 80% (n = 87) of them were female, 68.6% (n = 72) were married, and 68.6% (n = 72) had completed secondary school. They reported an average of three body parts with WRMSs at baseline (T0). By the end of the eight weeks (T1), the participants had reduced the number of WRMS-affected body parts, job stress, and incidences of working through pain, and had improved spine flexibility and handgrip strength. The factors significantly affecting the reduction in the number of body parts with WRMSs were change in the workstyle of working through pain, and self-rated health status. Our study has demonstrated that a community-based multidisciplinary program can reduce the number of body parts affected by WRMSs in low-skilled workers in low-income communities.
Highlights
Worldwide, work-related musculoskeletal symptoms (WRMSs) are a major public health issue, with musculoskeletal conditions contributing the greatest proportion of lost work productivity [1].Workers with WRMSs may experience pain, numbness, stiffness, and aching in various body parts [2].Of all working adults, grassroots working-class workers are the most vulnerable to WRMSs because the nature of their work mostly exposes them to the identified risk factors [3].Evidence has shown multidimensional programs, including exercise, can prevent/manage WRMSs in different contexts: office workers in Portugal [4]; bus drivers in South Korea [5]; workers requiringInt
The factors significantly affecting the reduction in the number of body parts with WRMSs were the change in the workstyle of working through pain, and self-rated health status
Studies have shown the ineffectiveness of single interventions; rather, multidimensional interventions are recommended to tackle the multifactorial nature of WRMSs [4,5,6,8]
Summary
Work-related musculoskeletal symptoms (WRMSs) are a major public health issue, with musculoskeletal conditions contributing the greatest proportion of lost work productivity [1].Workers with WRMSs may experience pain, numbness, stiffness, and aching in various body parts [2].Of all working adults, grassroots working-class workers are the most vulnerable to WRMSs because the nature of their work mostly exposes them to the identified risk factors [3].Evidence has shown multidimensional programs, including exercise, can prevent/manage WRMSs in different contexts: office workers in Portugal [4]; bus drivers in South Korea [5]; workers requiringInt. Work-related musculoskeletal symptoms (WRMSs) are a major public health issue, with musculoskeletal conditions contributing the greatest proportion of lost work productivity [1]. Workers with WRMSs may experience pain, numbness, stiffness, and aching in various body parts [2]. Grassroots working-class workers are the most vulnerable to WRMSs because the nature of their work mostly exposes them to the identified risk factors [3]. Evidence has shown multidimensional programs, including exercise, can prevent/manage WRMSs in different contexts: office workers in Portugal [4]; bus drivers in South Korea [5]; workers requiring. Res. Public Health 2019, 16, 1548; doi:10.3390/ijerph16091548 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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