Musculoskeletal symptoms among workers of the pulp and paper industry: the contribution of age, gender, body mass index and physical activity level.

Objectives . This study aimed to investigate 12-month and 7-day prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among workers of the pulp and paper industry, and assess the contribution of age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and physical activity (PA). Methods . The sample comprised 904 workers. Musculoskeletal symptoms were assessed using the Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire. χ 2 tests assessed the association between musculoskeletal symptoms and age/gender/BMI/PA, and multivariate logistic regression models predicted the 12-month occurrence of symptoms in the five most prevalent regions. Results . The five most affected body regions were the lower back, shoulders, neck, knees and wrists/hands. Older workers presented more symptoms in all body regions, except dorsal; female gender was associated with neck symptoms ( p  = 0.001); overweight was associated with a higher prevalence of lower back ( p  = 0.01), knee ( p  = 0.017) and ankle/foot ( p  = 0.037) symptoms; and a moderate PA level was associated with thigh/hip symptoms ( p  = 0.006). Age was a significant predictor in all five most affected regions; gender was a significant predictor for shoulders, neck and wrists/hands; and BMI was a significant predictor for lower back symptoms. Conclusion. The 12-month and 7-day prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among workers of the pulp and paper industry is higher in the lower back, shoulders, neck, knees and wrists/hands.