PDF
ePub
Citation
Print
Abstract
Objectives
The investigation of the degree of the relationship according to body part between occupational stress and musculoskeletal symptoms in the neck, shoulder, elbow, and hands of workers performing computer tasks.
Methods
In August and September 2009, we conducted a survey of 529 public office workers employed by the National Health Insurance Corporation using structured questionnaires in order to find demographic factors, work related factors, job stress, physical computer task load and musculoskeletal symptoms. Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire, Quick DASH (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Score), and the Northwick Park neck pain questionnaire were all used to evaluate their musculoskeletal symptoms. The presence of symptoms segregated by body part determined the dependent variables. The degree of job stress and other confounder variables determined the independent variables. We calculated the odds ratio employing multiple logistic regressions.
Results
A score of ≥5 in the VAS (Visual Analogue Scale) 10-point scale and the presence of symptoms lasting at least 1 week determined the musculoskeletal symptom group in regards to the Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire. The neck pain odds ratio was adjusted by sex, age, work hours, employment duration, physical computer task load and depression. It was determined to be 2.92 (95% CI 1.76~4.84) in the higher to lower occupational stress group. The shoulder pain odds ratio was 1.96 (95% CI 1.18~3.24), elbow pain 0.55 (95% CI 0.21~1.43), and hand pain 1.71 (95% CI 0.99~2.95). A score of ≥10 in the 100-unit scale determined the musculoskeletal symptom group in regards to the Northwick Park neck pain questionnaire and the Quick DASH. The neck symptom odds ratio was 2.73 (95% CI 1.66~4.49) and the upper extremity symptom figure was 2.18 (95% CI 1.29~3.68).
References
1. Kang DM, Kim YK, Kim JE. Job stress and musculoskeletal diseases. J Korean Med Assoc. 2011. 54(8):851–858. (Korean).
2. McFarlane AC. Stress-related musculoskeletal pain. Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2007. 21(3):549–565.
3. Kompier MAJ, van der Beek AJ. Psychosocial factors at work and musculoskeletal disorders. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2008. 34(5):323–325.
4. Koh DH, Kim HR, Chang SJ, Koh SB, Kang SK, Won JU, Roh JH. Analysis of the effect of job stress on occupational low back pain among shipyard workers using survival analysis. Korean J Occup Environ Med. 2005. 17(2):95–103. (Korean).
5. Feuerstein M, Shaw WS, Nicholas RA, Huang GD. From confounders to suspected risk factors: psychosocial factors and work-related upper extremity disorders. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2004. 14:171–178.
6. Johnston V, Jimmieson NL, Jull G, Souvlis T. Contribution of individual, workplace, psychosocial and physiological factors to neck pain in female office workers. Eur J Pain. 2009. 13:985–991.
7. Feyer A, Herbison P, Williamson A, de Silva I, Mandryk J, Hendrie L, Hely M. The role of physical and psychological factors in occupational low back pain: a prospective cohort study. Occup Environ Med. 2000. 57:116–120.
8. Lee EC, Kim HC, Jung DY, Kim DH, Leem JH, Park SG. Association between job-stress and VDT work, and musculoskeletal symptoms of neck and shoulder among white-collar workers. Korean J Occup Environ Med. 2007. 19(3):187–195. (Korean).
9. Lapointe J, Dionne CE, Brisson C, Montreuil S. Interaction between postural risk factors and job strain on self-reported musculoskeletal symptoms among users of video display units: a three-year prospective study. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2009. 35:134–144.
10. Hannan LM, Monteilh CP, Gerr F, Kleinbaum DG, Marcus M. Job strain and risk of musculoskeletal symptoms among a prospective cohort of occupational computer users. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2005. 31(5):375–386.
11. Krause N, Burgel B, Rempel D. Effort-reward imbalance and one-year change in neck-shoulder and upper extremity pain among call center computer operators. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2010. 36(1):42–53.
12. Elfering A, Grebner S, Gerber H, Semmer N. Workplace observation of work stressors, catecholamines and musculoskeletal pain in male employees. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2008. 34(5):337–344.
13. Elfering A, Grebner S, Semmer NK, Gerber H. Time control, catecholamines and back pain among young nurses. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2002. 28(6):386–393.
14. Joling CI, Blatter BM, Ybema JF, Bongers PM. Can favorable psychosocial work conditions and high work dedication protect against the occurrence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders? Scand J Work Environ Health. 2008. 34(5):345–355.
15. Solidaki E, Chatzi L, Bitsios P, Markatzi I, Plana E, Castro F, Palmer KT, Coggon D, Kogevinas M. Work-related and psychological determinants of multisite musculoskeletal pain. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2010. 36(1):54–61.
16. Haukka E, Leino-Arjas P, Ojajarvi A, Takala EP, Juntura EV, Riihimaki H. Mental stress and psychosocial factors at work in relation to multiple-site musculoskeletal pain: A longitudinal study of kitchen workers. Eur J Pain. 2011. 15(4):432–438.
17. Song JC, Lee WY, Kwon YJ, Ko MR, Lee SJ, Park SB, Nahm JH. Association between musculoskeletal subjective symptomsand the MMPI (Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory) profile of female VDT operators. Korean J Occup Environ Med. 1998. 10(4):599–609. (Korean).
18. Kim YM, Won CH, Seo JB, choi ES, Lee HS, Kim ER, Shin CJ, Hwang ST. MMPI profile in patients with chronic Low back pain. J Korean Orthop Assoc. 2000. 35:493–497. (Korean).
19. Crawford JO. The Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire. Occup Med (Lond). 2007. 57(4):300–301.
20. Kuorinka I, Jonsson B, Kilbom A, Vinterberg H, Biering-Sørensen F, Andersson G, Jørgensen K. Standardized Nordic questionnaires for the analysis of musculoskeletal symptoms. Appl Ergon. 1987. 18:233–237.
21. Descatha A, Roquelaure Y, Chastang JF, Evanoff B, Melchior M, Mariot C, Ha C, Imbernon E, Baron S, Hales T, Hurrell J. Evaluation of symptom surveys for occupational musculoskeletal disorders. Am J Ind Med. 1996. 29:609–617.
22. Descatha A, Roquelaure Y, Chastang JF, Evanoff B, Melchior M, Mariot C, Ha C, Imbernon E, Goldberg M, Leclerc A. Validity of nordic-style questionnaire in the surveillance of upper-limb work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2007. 33(1):58–65.
23. Choi WJ, Sung NJ, Kang YJ, Han SH. Validity of NIOSH- and nordic-style questionnaires in the screening and surveillance of neck and upper extremity work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Korean J Occup Environ Med. 2008. 20(3):205–214.
24. Beaton DE, Wright JG, Katz JN. Upper extremity collaborative group: Development of the quick DASH : comparison of three item-reduction approaches. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2005. 87(5):1038–1046.
25. Gummesson C, Ward MM, Atroshi I. The shortened disabilities of the arm, shoulder and hand Questionnaire (quick DASH): validity and reliability based on response within the full-length DASH. BMC Musculoskelet disord. 2006. 7:44.
26. Kim KS. Disability measurement tool for upper extremity disorders: The DASH (Disabilities of the Arm, Shouder, and Hand). J Korean Soc Occup Environ Hyg. 2009. 19(2):156–169. (Korean).
27. Kim KS. Determining the degree of disability in workers with upper limb musculoskeletal disorders using DASH. J Ergon Soc Korea. 2010. 29(3):311–320. (Korean).
28. Lim JY, Lee HY, Song JH, Kang JW, Lee JY. Evaluation of the reliability, construct validity, and responsiveness of the korean version of the DASH. J Korean Soc Surg Hand. 2005. 10(4):192–198. (Korean).
29. Dawson AP, Steele EJ, Hodges PW, Stewart S. Development and test-retest reliability of an extended version of the nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire (NMQ-E): A screening instrument for musculoskeletal pain. J Pain. 2009. 10(5):517–526.
30. Leak AM, Cooper J, Dyer S, Williams KA, turner-Strokes L, Frank AO. The northwick park neck pain questionnaire, devised to measure neck pain and disability. Br J Rheumatol. 1994. 33(5):469–474.
31. Lee KW, Seo HD, Jung KS, Kim SH, Chung YJ. Reliability and validity of Korean version northwick park neck pain questionnaire in neck pain patients. PTK. 2010. 17(3):68–76.
32. Chang SJ, Koh SB, Kang DM, Kim SH, Kang MG, Lee CG, Chung JJ, Cho JJ, Son M, Chae CH, Kim JW, Kim JI, Kim HS, Roh SC, Park JB, Woo JM, Kim SY, Kim JY, Ha M, Park JS, Rhee KY, Kim HR, Kong JS, Kim IA, Kim JS, Park JH, Huyun SJ, Son DK. Developing an occupational stress scale for Korean employees. Korean J Occup Environ Med. 2005. 17(4):297–317. (Korean).
33. Cho MJ, Kim KH. Diagnostic validity of the CESD(Korean version) in the assessment of the DSM-IIIR major depression. J Korean Neuropsychiatr Assoc. 1993. 32(3):381–399. (Korean).
34. Radoloff LS. The CES-D Scale: A self report depression scale for research in the general population. Appl Psychol Meas. 1977. 1:385–401.
35. Moore JS, Garg A. The Strain Index: a proposed method to analyze jobs for risk of distal upper extremity disorders. Am Ind Hyg Assoc J. 1995. 56(5):443–458.
36. Da Costa BR, Vieira ER. Risk factors for work-related musculo-skeletal disorders: a systematic review of recent longitudinal studies. Am J Ind Med. 2010. 53:285–323.
37. van Rijn RM, Huisstede BMA, Koes BW, Burdorf A. Associations between work-related factors and specific disorders of the shoulder - a systematic review of the literature. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2010. 36(3):189–201.
38. van Rijn RM, Huisstede BMA, Koes BW, Burdorf A. Associations between work-related factors and specific disorders atthe elbow: a systematic literature review. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2009. 48:528–536.
39. van Rijn RM, Huisstede BMA, Koes BW, Burdorf A. Associations between work-related factors and the carpal tunnel syndrome-a systematic review. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2009. 35(1):19–36.
40. Haahr JP, Andersen JH. Physical and psychosocial risk factors for lateral epicondylitis: a population based case-referent study. Occup Environ Med. 2003. 60:322–329.
41. Treaster D, Marras WS, Burr D, Sheedy JE, Hart D. Myofascial trigger point development from visual and postural stressors during computer work. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2006. 16(2):115–124.
42. Vasseljen O, Westgaard RH. Can stress-related shoulder and neck pain develop independently of muscle activity? Pain. 1996. 64(2):221–230.
43. Lundberg U, Forsman M, Zachau G, Eklöf M, Palmerud G, Melin B, Kadefors R. Effects of experimentally induced mental and physical stress on motor unit recruitment in the trapezius muscle. Work & Stress. 2002. 16(2):166–178.
44. Holliday KL, Nicholl BI, Macfarlane GJ, Thomson W, Davies KA, McBeth J. Genetic variation in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal stress axis influences susceptibility to musculoskeletal pain: results from the EPIFUND study. Ann Rheum Dis. 2010. 69:556–560.
45. Gaab J, Rohleder N, Heitz V, Engert V, Schad T, Schürmeyer TH, Ehlert U. Stress-induced changes in LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokine production in chronic fatigue syndrome. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2005. 30(2):188–198.
46. Mizumura K. Peripheral mechanism of muscle pain: An update. Curr Anaesth Crit Care. 2009. 20(4):183–187.
47. Barbe MF, Barr AE. Inflammation and the pathophysiology of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Brain Behav Immun. 2006. 20(5):423–429.
48. Working safely with video display terminals. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. cited 2011.8.30. Available: http://www.osha.gov/Publications/videoDisplay/videoDisplay.html.
49. Leuder R. Proceedings of the ergonomics summer workshop, UC berkeley center for occupational and environmental health continuing education program. A Proposed RULA for Computer Users. cited 2011. 8.30. San Francisco: Available: http://www.humanics-es.com/rulacite.htm.
XML Download