Physical and psychological factors associated with non-specific low back pain among female cleaners in academic settings

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the association between physical and psychological variables and the presence of NSLBP among female cleaners working in an academic setting. One hundred and ninety-nine female cleaners aged between 18 and 60 years old with and without LBP were asked to complete a set of self-reported questionnaires related to individual, work-related variables, quality of life, and the prevalence of NSLBP among cleaners. The binomial logistic regression analyses were used to determine the association between physical and psychological factors and the presence or of absence NSLBP. The results showed that the overall prevalence of MSDs among cleaners was 66.92% in the last 3 months and 43.23% at the present time. The majority of MSDs were NSLBP, with 30.24% in the last 3 months and 18.08% at the present time, respectively. There was a significant association between NSLBP and the WHOQOL physical health domain (AOR: 0.787; 95% CI: 0.698-0.886), the frequency of bending forward during work (AOR: 0.334; 95% CI: 0.137-0.814), the frequency of squatting or kneeling during work (AOR: 3.297; 95% CI: 1.066-10.194), feeling exhausted after working hours (AOR: 4.518; 95% CI: 1.037-19.692), and job dissatisfaction (AOR: 0.64; 95%CI: 0.018-0.228). In conclusion, NSLBP was the most commonly reported work-related MSD among cleaners in the academic settings. Physical factors including having good or bad working postures, as well as psychological factors including mental exhaustion were significantly associated with the existence of NSLBP in cleaners.