Prevalence of symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders and teleworking conditions in employees of a public company in Costa Rica

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic forced organizations to take extreme measures in order to contain the disease. As a result, teleworking emerged as one of the major actions taken to mitigate transmission. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders and the main teleworking conditions associated with them. By using a self-fill data gathering tool, based on the standardized Nordic Musculoskeletal Disorders Questionnaire, which was distributed through the institutional mail, a general prevalence was found of at least one symptom in 70.4% (71.9% of the women and 68.6% of the men). The upper limb zone was the one with the highest prevalence, namely 50%. People who exercise the most are the ones that showed the best self-reported physical health χ2 (3, n = 108) = 10.8, p = .01. The study found a relationship between the presence of symptoms in the neck and people who indicated left-hand dominance χ2 (1, n = 108) = 4.10, p = .04, as well as in women χ2 (1, n = 108) = 9, p = .003. The relationship in lower limbs was found in people who reported a high level of stress χ2 (4, n = 108) = 10.7, p = .03, and also in those that reported a less than good self-perception of physical health χ2 (1, n = 108) = 12.1, p < .001.