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Volume 27, Issue 131, January 2023

The prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal symptoms among surgeons in Riyadh city

Faisal Sulaiman Aldayel¹, Bander Idrees Ali², Mohammed Mesfer Alessa³, Abdulaziz Fahad Altammami⁴, Hani Jamal Alhudhaif³, Waleed Saleh Albishri¹, Nasser Abdulaziz Almutawa³, Ahmad Mahfouz Alamri¹

¹Imam Mohammed Bin Saud University, College of Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
²Department of Surgery, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
³King Saud University, College of Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
⁴Orthopaedic Department, Ministry of National Guard-Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

Introduction/Importance: Healthcare workers in many specialties are affected by disabling musculoskeletal symptoms and injuries related to the workplace. Ergonomics is the study of aligning the needs of a job and its applications can primarily prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMD) worldwide. The aim of this paper is to assess the prevalence of WMD in all hospitals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and explore any association in regard to individual variables. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study using self-administered electronic questionnaires among surgeons working in Riyadh city. Results: Of the 327 participants, 77.4% complained of musculoskeletal symptoms, pain being the most reported symptom 89.3%. The most affected body site was the lower back 57%. 47.3% of participants who didn't complain of MSK symptoms slept over 7 hours daily. Only 21.1% of the participants were aware of the recommendations made by the field of surgical ergonomics. Conclusion: The prevalence of WMD was 77.4%. About one-fifth only are aware of ergonomics recommendations. We recommend that surgical departments should implement more evidence-based ergonomics training protocols to limit the increasing prevalence of WMD.

Keywords: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders, Surgeons, Saudi Arabia