COMPARISON OF WORK-RELATED MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS AMONG WORKING WOMEN AND HOUSEWIVES

Background: Musculoskeletal conditions are the most common cause of physical and functional limitations among both working and non-working population. A 45% increase has been observed over 20 years in these conditions due to changes in lifestyle and activities. Nearly 25% of the overall population in under developed countries complain of MSK symptoms which decrease their functional capacity by restricting them with pain. Objective: To find out the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and compare them between housewives and working women. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 196 females in Lahore, aged between 20 to 35, women with prim gravida, both housewives as well as working women were included for the study. Any participants with musculoskeletal/ neurological/ psychological/ psychiatric / dermatological/ deficit or disorders that can affect the study were excluded. For the collection of the data, standardized Nordic Questionnaire was used. An informed consent was taken from the study participants. SPSS 25 was used for data analysis. Results: The overall mean age of the participating women was 26.86 years. Among the total population, 91 (46.4%) were housewives and 105 (53.6%) were working women. Among the working women, 49 (25.0%) worked part time (5-6 hours), 40 (20.4%) worked full time (8-10 hours) and 10 (6.1%) worked other hours. Conclusion: The upper limb regions were more commonly affected among the working women with neck region (53.3%) being the most affected followed by the shoulder and upper back area. Whereas among the housewives, musculoskeletal symptoms were more frequently reported in the shoulder region (60.4%) followed by increased symptoms in the lower back, ankle/feet and the knees.