Iranian Journal of Ergonomics

Introduction: High prevalence of neck pain has become an important health complain among dental practitioners which is followed by reduced working performance, burnout and early retirement. The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between individual and occupational risk factors as well as forward head posture (FHP) with dentist’s neck pain and to determine the priority of these factors in the development of the neck pain.

Material and Methods: In this cross - sectional study, 70 dentists of two dental centers in Tehran were examined with clinical testing of FHP. Individual and job characteristics were collected by means of a questionnaire. The visual analog scale (VAS) was applied in order to determine the severity of pain in various parts of the body. Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple linear regressions were used to examine the relationship and effect of the studied variables in creating the neck pain.

Results: According to the results, neck was the most painful part of the body (66.6%). Indeed, 40 (57.1%) of participating dentists were suffering from the forward head posture. The results of the multiple linear regression showed that the FHP with the standard coefficient (β= 0.64) was the most influential factor in predicting the incidence of neck pain.

Conclusion: The FHP has a greater impact than any other individual and job factors in creating neck pain. It may be concluded that awkward neck posture is the most important risk factor for neck pain in static sitting jobs such as dentistry.

Introduction: Nursing in hospitals, because of the nature of the work, is a job in which work-related musculoskeletal disorders are highly prevalent. The main cause of musculoskeletal disorder amongst nursing staff is the movement of patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of musculoskeletal disorders caused by movement of patients in nursing staff of a hospital affiliated with the Allah University of Medical Sciences.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 325 nurses from 30 wards of Baqiyatallah hospital during summer 2015. Data were collected using demographic and Body map Musculoskeletal Disorders Questionnaires and PTAI index checklist. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS software version 16.

Results: Some musculoskeletal symptoms had been experienced during the last 12 months by 78.3% of the nursing personnel. The results indicated that PTAI index score was significantly associated with musculoskeletal disorders occurrence (P < 0.05)

Conclusions: According to the findings, PTAI is an appropriate tool for musculoskeletal disorders risk identification and assessment due to patient handling in nursing personnel.