Prevalance of Work Related Musculoskeletal Disorder among the Car Mechanics of Indo-Pak Boarder City of Punjab

Abstract

Working conditions and the nature of profession tend to have a major effect on the health of the worker. Occupational health and safety systems are still in developing stage in India. The quantity of work-related problems in India is greater. The study is aimed to appraise the work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD) among car-repair mechanics of an Indo-Pak border area (Gurdaspur) of Punjab, India. This cross-sectional study included 125 car mechanics, conveniently selected from different authorized and unauthorized workshops. A comprehensive questioner was designed and used to seek information on WMSD. The rapid entire body assessment (REBA) technique was used to assess the risk level of musculoskeletal symptoms. The results showed that about 58 %of workers are having the musculoskeletal disorder at least one region of the body. The most reported MSD complaints are; lower back pain (52%), neck stiffness and shoulder pain (49%). The socio-demographic and physical risk factor are significantly associated (at 'P' <0.05) with the occurrence of musculoskeletal symptoms. It is concluded that car care workers are deprived of ergonomics awareness and appropriate interventions are required to be implemented.