Abstract

Visual display terminals (VDTs) as one of the most important and useful equipment are used in offices and workplaces that may be created some health hazards, including work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). The aims of this study were to (i) investigate the prevalence of WMSDs among Iranian bank tellers and (ii) to examine the demographic and work-related characteristics associated with that prevalence rate. In this cross-sectional study, 382 bank tellers who regularly working at VDTs stations were interviewed. The demographic, work characteristics and MSDs data were collected using specific questionnaire and standardized Nordic self-reporting Musculoskeletal Questionnaire. Hence, data analyses were carried out using IBM SPSS for Windows 20.0. As a result, 70.2% of participants reported the musculoskeletal problems within 12 past months in at least one of the body regions. The most prevalence was reported in the neck (37.4%) and low back (36.6%) regions, and the elbows (8.3%), and thighs (12.3%) were regions that reported with the least prevalence rate. Mean duration of daily VDT (DVDT) work in 268 subjects with musculoskeletal symptoms was 6.2 h (SD = ±2.2) and in other 114 subjects without symptoms, it was 5.5 h (SD = ±2.3). There was a positive significant relationship between DVDT work hours with reported musculoskeletal problems (P = 0.005). In conclusion, WMSDs in bank tellers happened in high rate (70.2%) and the most complain reported in neck and low back regions. The most consistently identified risk factor was a duration of DVDT use and inadequate break times.

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