Investigation of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Related Factors among Workers in a Southern Oil Field (2008)

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) have a growing impact worldwide which are associated, with high costs for organizations and governments incurred from long-term disability. Oil field workers, who have an important role in country’s economy, are often exposed to risk of musculoskeletal disorders because of static postures, high repetition, excessive force, contact stresses, on rigs and scaffolds. This study aimed at analyzing musculoskeletal disorders and related factors among these workers. A cross-sectional study was carried out among 60 workers in one of southern oil fields in 2008. They worked in drilling category (roughnecks, drilling,…),maintenance category(welders, electricians,…), catering category (cleaning personnel, cooks, …) and engineering category (expert of mud logging, …). A standard Nordic questionnaire was used to collect data via interviewing. To analyze the data, χ2 and logistic regression were performed. Workers with age (mean ±SD) of 35.0±9.8 years participated in this study; 48.3% of these had worked for more than 5 years. From physical factors of work, 83.3% of the workers reported fingers and waist repetition motions, elbow repetition bending, working with hands upper than shoulder height and 88.3% reported lifting loads more than 25 kg. 86.7% of the workers also reported at least one MSD in the previous 12 months. The most prevalent musculoskeletal complaints were knee pain (71.1%), low back pain (61.7%) and shoulder pain (51.7 %). Regression analysis showed significant relationship between back pain and lifting loads more than 25 kg, between shoulder and elbow pain and education, and between knee pain and working in drilling category (P