title: The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among British Columbia sonographers.
abstract: A survey (n = 211, 92% response rate) was carried out to determine baseline prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and identify related biomechanical, psychosocial, work organization and demographic factors among the population of sonographers in British Columbia, Canada. Ninety-one percent of respondents reported musculoskeletal pain or discomfort that they associated with the work tasks of scanning. Almost half reported frequent and severe symptoms. The neck, shoulder, and upper back were the main symptomatic body sites. A very small minority were absent from work due to the symptoms, with more than two thirds of respondents reporting working in pain. Bivariate analyses found significant associations between scanning time, static postures, psychosocial factors, and degree of musculoskeletal symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Employee and Workplace Health Services, Healthcare Benefit Trust, Vancouver, BC, Canada. andrer@hbt.bc.ca
authors.forename: Andre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.forename: Carmel
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: Victoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lessoway
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Berkowitz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001955:British Columbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D006804:Ergonomics; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014463:Ultrasonography