Prevalence and risk factors of lower back pain among nurses in Gampaha district, Sri Lanka 2020

Abstract

Introduction: Lower back pain is one of the commonest occupational musculoskeletal diseases among nurses, mostly among nurses working in specialty medical ICUs such as cardiology and neurology. Objectives: The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of lower back pain among nurses in Gampaha District, Sri Lanka and to identify the major factors related to lower back pain. Methods: This research was a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted among registered nurses, aged between 20-55 years who have worked for at least one year in a government or private hospital or a healthcare centre during the month of October 2020. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics with the aid of Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 software. Results: The study sample consisted of 132 (82.5%) female and 28 (17.5%) male nurses. Majority was unmarried (68.1%) while 26.3% were married. Results showed 61.3% prevalence of back pain among the population, while 38.7% reporting not having back pain at present. According to their opinion, assuming a bad posture for a long time (51.9%), suddenly performing movements (35.2%) and lifting heavy loads (27.8%) are major risk factors for low back pain. Conclusions: Perceived risk factors for occurrence of lower back pain identified in the study were workplace stress and heavy workload and bad posture assumed for a long time.