title: Musculoskeletal disorders among female nurses in a rural Japanese hospital.
abstract: The present research investigated the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) among a previously understudied group of Asian nursing professionals in a rural setting. A total of 305 female nurses (84% response rate) were recruited from a university teaching hospital in Yamanashi prefecture, central Japan. Data were gathered by means of a self-reporting questionnaire. Lower back pain (LBP) was the most commonly reported MSD, affecting 59% of all nurses. This was followed by MSD of the shoulder (46.6%), neck (27.9%), knees (16.4%) and upper leg (11.8%). Working in the surgical department was shown to increase the risk of any MSD 2.7 times when compared to nurses in the other departments (odds ratio 2.7, 95% confidence interval 1.2-6.7, P = 0.0202). Overall, our study shows that MSD are reasonably common among registered nurses in a rural Japanese hospital. These staff may also be at greater risk of suffering MSD than their city-based nursing counterparts and foreign colleagues, particularly with respect to LBP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences and University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, University of Yamanashi, Tamaho, Yamanashi 409-3898, Japan. richard@res.yamanashi-med.ac.jp
authors.forename: Derek Richard
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Kumeko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohmura
authors.forename: Zentaro
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yamagata
authors.forename: Junko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Minai
mesh_terms: D000062:Accidents, Occupational / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000328:Adult; D001416:Back Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006780:Hospitals, Rural; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D017770:Lifting / Q000009:adverse effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D009726:Nurses / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D016353:Self-Examination; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce