Evaluation of the Relationship Between Neck Pain and Ergonomic Factors in Office Workers

Overview

Neck pain is a prevalent condition and leading causes of disability particularly in office workers compared to other occupations (1-3). Neck pain is not only a risk factor for functional disability but it is also associated with decreased productivity of workers and quality of life (4). However, the present literature is insufficient to determine the factors affecting the level of disability caused by neck pain among office workers where intensive computer use is common (5). Thus, the current study aimed to explore the associations between disability levels and of occupational risk factors in computer-using office workers with neck pain.

This is a cross-sectional study. All participants will provide informed consent before participating in the study. The study will be conducted in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration criteria. Data will be collected using questionnaires, which include the Neck disability index, demographic information (including age, gender, educational level) and frequency of neck and head pain, history of general neck injuries and treatments applied. Also, years of office work at current job, sick leave, ergonomic training, duration of computer use per day and using of headphones, monitor and keyboard stand, mouse/mouse pad and number of computer screens will be determined. In addition, based on Rapid Office Strain Assessment (ROSA) method the potential ergonomic risk factors computer position, computer screen position, head and back position and mouse position will be determined. Visual pictures of the work positions will be shown to the participants and the participants will be asked to select the appropriate pictures showing their work positions. A self-administered questionnaire will be used to screen potential participants for this study. Inclusion criteria are individuals aged between 18 and 55, working on computer, having neck pain at least three months. Exclusion criteria are reporting pregnancy, having a history of accidents, trauma or surgery in the neck region, congenital anomaly of the spine, rheumatologic disease, osteoporosis, spondylosis, spondylolisthesis, infection of the spine and discs, tumor. Patients will be divided into 3 groups as mild, moderate and severe disabled according to their neck disability index values and will be analyzed statistically.