Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Symptoms Among Construction Workers

To investigate the prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort in construction workers, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 randomly selected subjects. Data were collected using the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) through semi-structured interviews. The results showed that the prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort among construction workers was 61%, with the highest prevalence in the neck (28%), followed by the shoulder (23%), lower back (15%), and elbow (14%). The workstations with the highest prevalence were decorators (91.3%), followed by ironworkers (68.4%), bricklayers (58.3%), concreters (50.0%), and laborers (40.6%). The findings of this study indicate that construction workers have a high prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and that the highest affected body regions vary across workstations. Thus, it is important to conduct further investigations to examine specific associated factors to develop interventions strategies to improve occupational health.