Prevalencia de trastornos musculoesqueléticos y riesgo ergonómico por posturas forzadas en trabajadores de limpieza en una empresa de servicios médicos ambulatorios

Abstract

Objectives: The present study aims to establish the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in cleaners who work in an Outpatient Medical Services Company, and evaluate the ergonomic risk due to forced postures of the activities carried out by these workers, by applying the REBA method. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study, for which 14 workers were included; they were between 21-42 years old, 64% female, to whom the Nordic questionnaire was applied, with which the sociodemographic characteristics were analyzed and musculoskeletal symptomatology. In addition, the REBA method was used to evaluate the exposure of workers to ergonomic risk factors due to forced postures, the same ones that could produce musculoskeletal disorders in the different body segments Results: Of the total number of workers in the study, 57% of the total reported musculoskeletal symptoms. The body segments most affected according to sex were in men the lumbar back region and neck with 21%; in women they were the lumbar back region and neck with 36%. When carrying out the ergonomic evaluation with the REBA method, it was shown that 30% of the activities present a high-risk level, and 50% of the activities a medium risk. The evaluated activities are characterized by postures that involve trunk flexion greater than 60º, in turn applying an approximate force of 5 kg, rotation or lateralization of upper limbs. Conclusions: The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms in the lumbar back and neck regions demonstrated in this study may be associated with ergonomic risk factors of the tasks that cleaning workers perform during their working hours. This establishes a guideline for conducting more related studies and implementing corrective measures in this job position.