Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders are present in a range of occupations. This is confirmed from a number of studies done around the world. However, few attempts have been done to document the presence of musculoskeletal disorders in occupational diseases in Nepal and there are hardly any studies done to see musculoskeletal disorders in farmers of Nepal. Nepal is an agricultural country and traditional practices in farming are adopted demanding a lot on the manual work. Objectives:  Aim of this study is to find out the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in Bhaktapur district of Nepal. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study design. A convenience sample of 246 farmers from Bhaktapur district, Nepal aged between 24-65 years, were included in the study. The Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire was a tool adapted to measure MSDs in the farmers. Descriptive analysis of data was done. Results: Farmers (n=246) reported pain in all the nine areas of the body mentioned in the questionnaire. More than 70% of farmers have some kind of musculoskeletal disorders. However, six major areas of pain were identified as: Neck-31(12.6 %), Shoulder-26(10.6%), Elbow- 30(12.2%), Low back- 89(36.2%), Knee- 53(21.5%) and ankle 32(13%). Conclusion: The prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in farmers is very high. Lack of awareness about the MSDs and improper knowledge of ergonomics causes the problems.

Introduction: Medical doctors have profound influence on other health professions including physiotherapist as they are at the top of the pyramid of healthcare profession. There is a lack of knowledge of physiotherapy among medical doctors. They may not be knowing of all physiotherapy services and practice. The objective of this study was to find adequate knowledge of physiotherapy practice among medical interns in a tertiary care hospital. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on medical interns of a tertiary hospital of Kathmandu between 21st March - 20th May 2021, after taking ethical approval from the Institutional Review Committee. A convenient sampling method was used and sample size was calculated to be 94. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the demographic details and knowledge of Physiotherapy. Data was analyzed using statistical package for the social sciences version 20. Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentage for binary data. Results: The knowledge of physiotherapy practice was seen adequate among 16 (17%) (95% Confidence Interval = 9.41-24.59) medical interns. Physiotherapy is effective in reducing pain was acknowledged by 89 (97.4 %), 61 (64.9 %) had knowledge about conditions treated by physiotherapy, 55 (58.5 %) had knowledge that physiotherapy treatment follows definite treatment protocol and 26 (27.7 %) had knowledge that exercise prescription is done in physiotherapy. Conclusions: The prevalence of adequate knowledge is less in our study which is similar to other studies done in similar settings. Therefore, there is a need of educating the future medical doctors about physiotherapy, thereby reaching a better patient care.

Background: Ageing is an inevitable process. The population of elderly is increasing in Nepal. Caring of elderly at geriatric care homes is becoming popular. Caregivers take care of the elderly in the geriatric care homes. Occupational injuries are very common and no study has been done to document the injuries sustained by caregivers working in geriatric care homes in Nepal. This study has been conducted to determine the prevalence of work related musculoskeletal disorders and the injuries sustained among care givers working in geriatric care homes in Nepal. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study design. A convenience sample of 41 caregivers among geriatric care homes in Kathmandu valley aged between 20-45 years were included in the study. The Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire was adapted to measure Musculoskeletal Disorders in the study population. Descriptive analysis of data was done. Type of injury was classified and their consequences observed. Results: Caregivers (n=41) reported work related musculoskeletal disorders in six areas of the questionnaire: Neck 4 (9.75 %), Shoulder 8(19.5%), Elbow 4(9.75%), Low back 22(53.65%), Knee 5(12.19%) and ankle 3(7.31%). Common types of injuries sustained were muscle strain, ligament sprain, joint pain, hernia etc. In most of the cases, caregivers had to take interventions like taking medications, exercises, rest while some were able to get away with minor symptoms. Conclusion: The incidence of occupational injuries among caregivers is high. The existing training programs are not enough. A revision of the course work for training of caregivers is necessary

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