Effect of a Long Exercise Program in the Reduction of Musculoskeletal Discomfort in Office Workers

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of a six week exercise program to reduce the muscle tone of the trapezius and musculoskeletal discomfort (MED) of office workers. Twenty-six workers performed an exercise program based on: (1) stretching of cervical and/or dorsal region; (2) joint mobility of shoulders and rachis; (3) strengthening deep stabilizer and core muscles; and (4) scapula stabilizing exercises. A Myoton device was used to evaluate trapezius tone and the Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire was used to assess changes in MED at three points of evaluation: at the beginning (Pre_1) and at the end of the workday (Post_1), and after the training program (Pre_2). The Wilcoxon test and Cohen’s d were performed to examine differences and effect sizes between evaluations. Main results show that trapezius tone remained constant during the workday, but decreased in the dominant upper trapezius (p = 0.003, ES = −0.60) and increased in the non-dominant middle trapezius (p = 0.016, ES = 0.45) after the exercise program, which eliminated significant muscle asymmetries. MED significantly decreased in the neck (p = 0.027, ES = −0.60) and upper back (p = 0.046, ES = −0.67). In conclusion, MED appears to improve in office workers after a six week training program, which may be explained by a decrease in trapezius tone and increase in the left middle trapezius tone.

A Survey on Stretching Practices in Women and Men from Various Sports or Physical Activity Programs

“…Secondly, the assumptions for health and wellness benefits were generally concordant with the literature. For instance, multiple studies have tested the effects of stretching programs implemented in office settings [ 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 ]. These studies were generally conclusive for significantly improved health-related quality of life.…”

Reduction of Fatigue and Musculoskeletal Complaints in Garment Sewing Operator through a Combination of Stretching Brain Gym® and Touch for Health

“…In a previous study, it was reported that physical exercise can control the risk factors of fatigue [28,29] and MSDs [30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. The types of physical exercise used were physical exercise [30], stretching [31,32], resistance training [28,33], strength training [34], and a combination of stretching and games [30].…”

“…In addition, a combination of stretching, resistance, and strength training provides the best results [33,41]. Physical exercise has various durations and the frequency of intervention times varies: resistance exercises once a day for 20 min, three times a week for 4 months [28]; 1-h low-intensity running sessions three times a week for a period of six consecutive weeks [29]; 36 different stretches once every 6 min, with stretches lasting 10 to 15 s for 15-17 workdays [31]; a worksite-based physical activities program once a day, lasting 10 min, for 12 months [35]; 10 min daily exercise session for 2 months [36]; physical exercise for 20 min, three times a week for 12 months [37]; resistance training lasting 2 and 12 min, five times a week for 10 weeks [33]; three strength training interventions with different frequencies and durations (1 h once a week, 20 min three times a week, and 7 min nine times a week) for 2 weeks [34]; stretching two times/week for 5-15 min, lasting 6 weeks [38]; exercise training for 10-15 min, three times a week for 11 weeks [39]; exercise two times a week for 3 months [30]; and stretching exercises lasting 10-15 min, two times a day for 4 weeks [32].…”

“…Several studies on stretching to reduce fatigue and MSDs have been carried out on workers in sitting positions, such as workers in call centers [36], office workers [30,[32][33][34][37][38][39]41], and bus drivers [50]. However, there have been no studies yet on stretching focusing on garment-sewing operators.…”

Exploring Shank Circumference by Stretching after Training among Volleyball Players

“…Stretching has long been a common modality before and after training during different exercise stages [18]. The efficacy of stretching as an aid to performance is less apparent; however, the benefit may lie in the alleviation of discomfort and pain [16,19]. Particularly, chronic stretching may reduce injury [18].…”