Work related musculoskeletal disorders among garment workers in South Asia: A systematic review

Abstract

INTRODUCTION & OBJECTIVES: Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs) are considered one of the central occupational health problems in both developed and developing countries. Localised pain, swelling, and discomfort in the affected area are the commonest symptoms. Aim of this systematic review was to estimate the burden of WMSDs among garment workers in South Asian countries. METHODS: The protocol and search strategy were registered with PROSPERO [CRD 42018089638]. 15 electronic databases, and 4 grey literature sources were searched. Reference lists of selected articles and two academic search engines were used to find any missing articles. Studies in English language focusing on garment workers of South Asia were included, irrespective of the type and date of publication. Joanna Briggs critical appraisal tools were used for quality assessment. RESULTS: 2534 studies were identified. Following screening and assessing eligibility, 45 journal articles and 5 theses from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka were included. 43 descriptive cross-sectional studies had sample sizes ranging from 20 — 1 191, reported age ranging from 16 — 62 years and the overall prevalence of WMSDs among garment workers between 15.5% - 92%. Twenty-five studies reported neck pain [1% - 91%], and low back pain [6.2% - 90%] was reported by twenty-nine studies. Thirty-six studies identified pain as the most common symptom. Static work posture, long working hours, and low job satisfaction were main contributing factors. Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire was the most used instrument. CONCLUSION: Burden of WMSDs among garment workers in South Asia is high. There may be opportunities to intervene and minimize WMSDs based on identified factors.