association of musculoskeletal complaints with psychosocial factors among nurses in semnan hospitals

Musculoskeletal disorders (msds) are common problems among nurses and are associated with many underlying occupational factors. the aim of the study was to evaluate msds in nurses regarding psychosocial stress status at work. in this cross-sectional study, all nurses who worked at semnan city hospitals in 2011 were enrolled. musculoskeletal symptoms and stress levels were evaluated via nordic questionnaire. a total of 286 nurses (89%) out of 320 registered nurses accepted to participate in this study. female nurses constitute 73.5% of participants. among the participants, 268 nurses (93.7%) expressed msds with involvement of at least one site. the most common msds were reported consecutively in low back (66.1%), neck (65.4%), and knee (59.4%). the mean of psychosocial score was 2.82 (95% ci, 2.75-2.89) that indicated a moderate level of stress in participants. a significant association between psychosocial stress and msds with involvement of at least one site including shoulders, upper back, elbows, and pelvis/legs was seen (adjusted or, 2.73; 95% ci, 1.06-7.01; p = 0.04). a high prevalence of self-reported msds was observed in association with psychosocial stress. to address msds, it is highly recommended to make some additional interventions to reduce psychosocial stress at work.