The prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal system pain in teachers and its relationship with work stress

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Objectives. The purpose of this research was to determine the prevalence and severity of entire-body musculoskeletal system pain (MSSP) in teachers and its association with work stress. Methods. The sample in this descriptive, cross-sectional research consisted of 437 teachers. Research data were collected using a sociodemographic information form, the Cornell musculoskeletal discomfort scale and the work stress scale (WSS). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. Results. The most prevalent MSSPs observed in the 20 body regions of the teachers in the study, a profession involving high work-related pain levels, were in the lumbar, neck and back regions. Each one-unit increase in teachers’ WSS scores increased the likelihood of work-related lumbar pain by 6% (prevalance ratio [PR] 1.06; 95% confidence interval [CI] [1.04, 1.12]), of neck pain by 11% (PR 1.11; 95% CI [1.08, 1.16]) and of back pain by 8% (PR 1.08; 95% CI [1.05, 1.14]). A significant positive correlation was observed between MSSP scores in the 20 body regions and WSS scores. Conclusions. MSSP is a widespread occupational health problem, and work stress is a cause of significant MSSP in the body as a whole and particularly in the lumbar, neck and back regions.