Stretching Exercises to Prevent Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders – A Review Article

Abstract

Background: Lower back, neck and shoulder pain, which affects the lumbar spine, are the most commonly reported Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs). Approximately 80 percent of the general population is affected by these disorders at a certain point during their lifetime, with some estimates being as high as 84 percent. The most commonly used approach for the treatment of MSDs is exercise therapy. Stretching provides several benefits for people at work, and may help improve morale and team cohesiveness. Another benefit of stretching is that participants may increase their range of motion compared to their counterparts who do not participate in stretching programs. Objective: The aim of this study is to synthesize the recent literature on workplace stretching exercise programs and their effects on reducing work-related MSDs in different occupational groups. Method: Specific keywords were identified and used in a systematic search to guide the discovery of relevant studies and data. Electronic databases including PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar, were searched for the following combination of keywords: workplace, stretching, exercises, injury, work, prevention, safety, occupation, and ergonomics. Studies that do not focus on the benefits of stretching exercise were excluded simply because the present study examines prevention of work-related musculoskeletal disorders through stretching exercises. Results: Whilst majority of the literature examined in this study may not completely explain that stretching at the office will prevent work-related musculoskeletal accidental injuries, some studies have shown that performing stretching exercises can lead to reducing discomfort/pain and raising range of motion (ROM). Particularly. As pointed out by Moore [44], workplace stretching exercise programs might also increase an employee's belief of personal physique attractiveness and overall self-worth. Conclusion: Majority of the literature reviewed in this study might not fully explain that stretching at work prevents work-related musculoskeletal injuries. Some studies have shown that performing stretching exercises can contribute to reducing discomfort/pain and increasing range of motion (ROM). Particularly, construction workers who participated in stretching exercise programs reported significant positive effects including reduction in pains/disability, increase in muscle flexibility and endurance. These exercises are recommended to be performed during breaks throughout, depending on the type of occupation. All the exercises suggested could be performed at the workstation, and only require a few seconds to perform.

Factors Predicting the Stretching Exercise Behaviors of Office Employees Working in the Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran, Iran

“…Sufficient stretching was defined as a stretched position for each muscle for 10-30 s to be repeated 3 or 4 times every 20 min for 5 days a week [16][17][18][19] . Qualitative and quantitative approaches were applied by 15 office employees to assess facial validity of the HPM constructs questionnaire through which all their recommendations were inserted into the questionnaire.…”

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“…Enough stretching means stretched position for each muscle up to 10 to 30 seconds to be repeated 3 or 4 time, five days/week once every 20 minutes (Gasibat, Simbak, Aziz, Petridis, & Tróznai, 2017). The answer for this question was a 2-option scale of Yes or No.…”

Low Back Pain Among Samarinda Sarong’s Traditional Weavers and Its Related Factors

“…High-risk sector/occupation includes health sectors, transportation sectors, mining, food control, leather tanning and manufacturing (Punnett et al, 2005). MSD have increasingly become prevalent worldwide during the past decade (Gasibat et al, 2017), not only affect the workers' quality of life, but also impose a major economic burden to the society (Wang et al, 2017). MSD also has a highly health cost, constituting a major cause of occupational injury and physical disability in both developed and developing countries (Veisi et al, 2016).…”