Prevalence and factors associated with neck, shoulder and low back pains among medical students in a Malaysian Medical College

Abstract

BackgroundThe main purpose of the study was to assess the prevalence, body distributions and factors associated with musculoskeletal pain (MSP) among medical students in a private Malaysian medical college.MethodThis cross-sectional study was conducted among 232 medical students in a private medical college using an online questionnaire. The questionnaire was a modified Standardized Nordic Questionnaire focused on neck, shoulder and low back pain in the past week and the past year.ResultsTwo hundred and thirty two medical students responded to the questionnaire out of 642. Mean age was 20.7 ± 2.1 years. The majority were female (62.9%), Malay (80.6%) and in the preclinical years (72%). One hundred and six (45.7%) of all students had at least one site of MSP in the past week and 151 (65.1%) had at least one site of MSP in the past year. MSP in the past week was associated significantly with the academic year, (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.15-3.67, P = 0.015), history of trauma (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.2-5.3, P = 0.011), family history of MSP (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.1-3.9, P = 0.023) and Body Mass Index (BMI) (P = 0.028). MSP in the past year was significantly associated with computer use (P = 0.027), daily hours of computer use (median ± IQR (5.0 ±3.0), history of trauma (OR 7.5, 95% CI 2.24-2.56, P < 0.01) and family history of MSP (OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.31-4.90, P = 0.006). On multivariate analysis, factors associated with MSP during the past week were a family history of MSP (p = 0.029) and BMI (p = 0.03). Factors associated with MSP during the past year were being in clinical years (p = 0.002, computer use (p = 0.038), and a history of trauma (p = 0.030).ConclusionMSP among medical students was relatively high, thus, further clinical assessment is needed in depth study of ergonomics. The study results indicate that medical school authorities should take measures to prevent MSP due to factors related to medical school. Students should make aware of importance of weight reduction to reduce MSP.

Musculoskeletal disorders among first-year Ghanaian students in a nursing college

“…This prevalence rate is in general agreement with the prevalence rates reported in the literature for college students which vary between 32.9% and 89.3% [6][7][8][9][10][11][13][14][15][16]18,19 . It is however higher than the 32.9% 8 and 36.9% 9 reported among nursing students in Japan, and lower than the 73.3% 18 and 80.0% 19 reported among nursing students in Korea and Australia respectively, as well as the reported prevalence among nurses at the workplace (i.e 78-84.4%) [30][31][32][33] .…”

“…The point prevalence of MSDs in the current study is higher than the 21.5% reported among nursing students in Japan 8 . It is however comparable to the estimated 46.9% 15 and 45.7% 16 prevalence rates among medical students in China and Malaysia respectively. There is a paucity of epidemiological studies that have explored the period-prevalence, point-prevalence and functional impairment of MSDs as triadic entities in college students.…”

“…However, no significant sexual differences were observed in all three domains of this study (i.e point-, period-prevalence and severity). A previous study among medical students in Malaysia also found no gender differences in the prevalence of MSDs 16 .…”

“…They are a major cause of severe long-term pain and disability 1,2 , productivity loss 3 and reduced quality of life 4,5 which can lead to reduced educational attainment among students. In recent years, MSDs have emerged as a public health problem among college students, with the estimated prevalence rate varying between 32.9% and 89.3% in different parts of the world [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] . Factors such as computer usage [10][11][12][13]17 , female sex 6,7,14,17 , lack of regular exercise 13,18 and psychosocial stress and mental pressure 6,15 have been associated with increased prevalence of MSDs among this population.…”

Neck Pain and Low Back Pain in Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…The PSS questionnaire is widely employed, has strong normative Previous studies have reported a high incidence of musculoskeletal pain in medical students. A study at a Malaysian medical college found that 65% of students had musculoskeletal pain within the past year and reported an association with clinical years, computer use and a prior history of trauma [11]. A study at an Austrian medical school reported a prevalence of 53% for low back pain among medical students [12].…”