Ergonomic Risk Assessment for Musculoskeletal Disorders among Ultrasonologists of Peshawar: A Cross- Sectional Survey
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like to obtain more information about the submission process or if you have further questions.
Abstract
Background: Ergonomics is the study of analyzing the demands of a task and aligning them with the abilities of the worker to establish an optimal work environment that minimizes the likelihood of injuries while maximizing efficiency. In safety and ergonomic literature, risk factors and consequent risks are common conceptions. Ergonomics has an impact on the adapted posture of workers developed due to the demand of their work procedure. Disorders related to bad posture and usage of different equipment and tools in a workplace can be solved through better ergonomics. Objective: To determine the ergonomic risk assessment for musculoskeletal disorders among Ultrasonologists of Peshawar. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 117 participants from both public and private sector hospitals of Peshawar. Census sampling technique was used to select the participants. Consent was obtained and data was recorded using the Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) questionnaire. Results: Among the participants (n=117), majority were from the age group 31-40 years, n=48 (41%) with a mean age of 36 ± 7. Regarding the gender distribution, males were greater in number, n=88 (75.2%). The ergonomic risk for musculoskeletal disorders reveals that, majority of the participants fall in the medium risk, followed by low risk, negligible risk and very high risk, respectively. The analysis showed statistically significant association of ergonomics risk with age, gender, working hours, organization and work experience. Conclusions: It was concluded that the ergonomic risk for musculoskeletal disorders among Ultrasonologists is moderate to low followed by high risk. Males have higher ergonomic risk compared to females. Further investigations are needed.
Citation Metrics:
Downloads
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
References
Alshuwaer, T. A. (2019). Prevention of Shoulder Injuries in Sonographers: A Systematic Review. Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, 35(5), 392-399. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756479319850140
Brusin, J. H. (2011). Ergonomics in radiology. Radiologic technology, 83(2), 141-157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crad.2008.08.003
Bello, I. (2019). Women, ergonomics and repetitiveness. In Safety and health for workers-Research and practical perspective. IntechOpen. https://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.82065
Cavalini, M. A., Berduszek, R. J., & van der Sluis, C. K. (2017). Construct validity and test–retest reliability of the revised Upper Extremity Work Demands (UEWD-R) Scale. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 74(10), 763-768. https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2017-104370
Choi, S. D., & Brings, K. (2016). Work-related musculoskeletal risks associated with nurses and nursing assistants handling overweight and obese patients: A literature review. Work, 53(2), 439-448. https://doi.org/10.3233/wor-152222
De Bortoli, M. M., Oellingrath, I. M., Fell, A. K. M., Burdorf, A., & Robroek, S. J. (2021). Influence of lifestyle risk factors on work ability and sick leave in a general Working population in Norway: a 5-year longitudinal study. BMJ open, 11(2), e045678. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045678
Evans, K., Roll, S., & Baker, J. (2009). Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSD) among registered diagnostic medical sonographers and vascular technologists: a representative sample. Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, 25(6), 287-299. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756479309351748
García-Lallana, A., Viteri-Ramírez, G., Saiz-Mendiguren, R., Broncano, J., & Aquerreta, J. D. (2011). Ergonomía del puesto de trabajo en radiología. Radiología, 53(6), 507-515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rx.2011.06.007
Horkey, J., & King, P. (2004). Ergonomic recommendations and their role in cardiac sonography. Work, 22(3), 207-218. https://doi.org/10.1177/1071181311551223
Hoe, V. C., Urquhart, D. M., Kelsall, H. L., Zamri, E. N., & Sim, M. R. (2018). Ergonomic
interventions for preventing work‐related musculoskeletal disorders of the upper limb and neck among office workers. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (10). https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.cd008570.pub3
Haghshenas, B., Habibi, E., Haji Esmaeil Hajar, F., Ghanbary Sartang, A., van Wijk, L., & Khakkar, S. (2018). The association between musculoskeletal disorders with mental workload and occupational fatigue in the office staff of a communication service company in Tehran, Iran, in 2017. Journal of Occupational Health and Epidemiology, 7(1), 20-29. https://doi.org/10.29252/johe.7.1.20
Ismail, S. A., Tamrin, S. B. M., & Hashim, Z. (2009). The association between ergonomic risk factors, rula score, and musculoskeletal pain among school children: a preliminary result. Global Journal of Health Science, 1(2), 73. https:// doi: 10.5681/hpp.2013.005
Irurhe, N. K., Okafor, U. C., Adekola, O. O., Odebiyi, D. O., Habeebu, M. Y. M., & Sowunmi, A. C. (2013). Work Related musculoskeletal discomforts (WRMD) in ultrasonologists: prevalence and risk factors. World Journal of Medical Sciences, 8(3), 199-204. https://doi: 10.5829/idosi.wjms.2013.8.3.73100
Jaffar, N., Abdul-Tharim, A. H., Mohd-Kamar, I. F., & Lop, N. S. (2011). A literature review of ergonomics risk factors in construction industry. Procedia engineering, 20, 89-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2011.11.142
Khajehnasiri, F., Zaroushani, V., & Poursadeqiyan, M. (2021). Macro ergonomics and health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Work, 69(3), 713-4. https://doi: 10.3233/WOR-210412
Morton, B., & Delf, P. (2008). The prevalence and causes of MSI amongst sonographers. Radiography, 14(3), 195-200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2007.02.004
Muir, M., Hrynkow, P., Chase, R., Boyce, D., & Mclean, D. (2004). The nature, cause, and extent of occupational musculoskeletal injuries among sonographers: recommendations for treatment and prevention. Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, 20(5), 317-325. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756479304266737
Mirmohammadi, S. J., Mehrparvar, A. H., Olia, M. B., & Mirmohammadi, M. (2012). Effects of training intervention on non-ergonomic positions among video display terminals (VDT) users. Work, 42(3), 429-433. https://doi.org/10.3233/wor-2012-1400
Roll, S. C. (2012). Injuries and prevention in health care providers. Work (Reading, Mass.), 42(3), 309-310. https://doi.org/article/med/22741189
Rahman, M. N. A., Razak, N. S. A., Hassan, M. F., & Adzila, S. (2018). Relationship Between Musculoskeletal Symptoms and Ergonomic Risk Factors Among Office Workers. Advanced Science Letters, 24(1), 587-591. https://doi.org/10.1166/asl.2018.11765
Scholl, C., & Salisbury, H. (2017). Barriers to performing ergonomic scanning techniques for sonographers. Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, 33(5), 406-411. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756479317726768
Sethi, J., Sandhu, J. S., & Imbanathan, V. (2011). Effect of Body Mass Index on work related musculoskeletal discomfort and occupational stress of computer workers in a developed ergonomic setup. Sports Medicine, Arthroscopy, Rehabilitation, Therapy & Technology, 3(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1186/1758-2555-3-22
Vanaclocha‐Vanaclocha, V., Sáiz‐Sapena, N., Ortiz‐Criado, J. M., & Vanaclocha, N. (2017). Peripheral Nerve Entrapment and their Surgical Treatment. In Peripheral Nerve Regeneration-From Surgery to New Therapeutic Approaches Including Biomaterials and Cell-Based Therapies Development. IntechOpen. https:// doi: 10.5772/67946
Val Gregory, M. I. R., & Dmu, M. (1998). Musculoskeletal injuries: an occupational health and safety issue in sonography. Educational Supplement, 1-3. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756479304266737