Ann Occup Environ Med.  2016 ;28(1):1. 10.1186/s40557-016-0089-0.

Prevalence and risk factors of low back pain among operation room staff at a Tertiary Care Center, Makkah, Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

• Bin Homaid M
• Abdelmoety D
• Alshareef
• Alghamdi A
• Alhozali F
• Alfahmi N
• Hafiz W
• Alzahrani
• Elmorsy S

• KMID: 2370881
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1186/s40557-016-0089-0

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Low Back Pain (LBP) is the commonest musculoskeletal disorder and an important occupational hazard among healthcare workers (HCWs) that peaks among Operating Room (OR) staff. This cross-sectional study aimed to assess the prevalence, characteristics, and risk factors of low back pain among operating room (OR) staff in a tertiary healthcare center in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
METHODS
A 39-item self-administered questionnaire was distributed to all available OR staff. Data about personal, sociodemographic, general risk factors OR specific risky activities, and LBP characteristics were obtained. Descriptive, crosstabs, and univariate and multivariate logistic regression tests were employed.
RESULTS
Out of the 143 distributed questionnaires, 84 % were received. LBP prevalence was 74.2 %. No statistically significant associations were detected between LBP and any of the general risk factors (p >0.05). However, most of the OR risky activities were significantly associated with the occurrence of LBP (p <0.05) e.g. lifting objects above the waist, rotating torso while bearing weight, transferring patients onto bed or chair, pulling a patient up the bed, and repositioning a patient in bed. These significant associations were preserved after adjustment for gender, perceived stress at work, educational level, and receiving education about LBP. Rest and analgesics were reported to be the most common relievers.
CONCLUSIONS
LBP is a common health issue among KAMC OR staff. OR risky activities were found to contribute to this problem. We suggest designing educational interventional programs to teach OR staff the best way to prevent this problem.

Keyword

Keywords; Musculoskeletal pain; Low back pain; Healthcare worker; Operating room staff

MeSH Terms

Analgesics
Cross-Sectional Studies*
Delivery of Health Care
Education
Humans
Lifting
Logistic Models
Low Back Pain*
Musculoskeletal Pain
Operating Rooms
Prevalence*
Risk Factors*
Saudi Arabia*
Tertiary Care Centers*
Tertiary Healthcare*
Torso
Analgesics