PREVALENCE OF MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS AMONG IT PROFESSIONALS IN TECHNOPARK THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Musculoskeletal disorders or MSDs are soft tissue injuries caused by sudden or sustained exposure to repetitive motion, force, vibration and awkward positions. IT Professionals  represent an occupational group where chances to develop MSDs are high because of their work pattern, in which they have fixed or constrained body position, continual repetition of movements, force concentrated on small parts of the body, like hand or wrist or a pace of work that does not allow sufficient recovery between movements. In India, many studies were done to evaluate the prevalence of MSDs among other occupational groups but not much among IT Professionals.  This study has been carried out to determine the prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) among IT Professionals. The study design was cross sectional with information technology (IT) Professionals working in Technopark Thiruvananthapuram as the study population. The sampling method used for the survey is the simple random sampling. Data was collected using a modified version of Dutch musculoskeletal questionnaire. Chi-square (χ2) test was applied for statistical significance and associations were assessed through p value with 95% confidence interval.  Prevalence of work related MSD during last 12 months, was 36.57%. The common prevalence of work related MSD reported during last 12 months based on their body region were neck (83.42), shoulders (76.57%), and back (61.71%). There was a statistically significant difference in terms of experience, sitting for long period, using key board and working in the same posture for long period. There was no statistically significant difference in terms of age, BMI, gender, education.  The study has concluded that MSD is prevalent among IT Professionals working in Technopark Thiruvananthapuram..