Factors Associated with Musculoskeletal Disorders among Regular and Special Education Teachers: A Narrative Review

Ahmad Asyraf Abdul Rahim, Mohammad Saffree Jeffree (), Dayang Maryama Ag Daud, Nicholas Pang and Mohd Fazeli Sazali
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Ahmad Asyraf Abdul Rahim: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Sabah, Malaysia
Mohammad Saffree Jeffree: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Sabah, Malaysia
Dayang Maryama Ag Daud: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Sabah, Malaysia
Nicholas Pang: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Sabah, Malaysia
Mohd Fazeli Sazali: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, Kota Kinabalu 88400, Sabah, Malaysia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-10

Abstract: Musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) is a major health problem, which can lead to an enormous burden to the institution as well as chronic disability to the individual. Teachers are at risk of developing MSD due to the exposure to various ergonomic risk factors. Teachers of special education, for example, are expected to perform extra duty such as lifting and moving students, feeding food, changing diapers, and helping them in ambulation. Although there is an adequate amount of scientific research on MSD’s prevalence and its risk factors among regular teachers, only few studies have focused on special education teachers. This review aimed to address these gaps by describing the evidence from various papers on the prevalence of MSD among regular and special education teachers and the related risk factors. The papers have been gathered using electronic databases, including PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Springer. The prevalence of MSD among regular teachers ranges from 48.7% to 73.7%, while the prevalence ranges from 38.7% to 94% in special education teachers. Risk factors, such as individual (age, duration of teaching, working hours, and work burden), physical (teaching activities, affected body areas), and psychological factors (stress, anxiety, fear), were identified. From the review, it is recommended to implement ergonomically designed workplaces, comprehensive ergonomic training, psychological approaches, and functional training among teachers at risk.

Keywords: musculoskeletal disorders; special education teachers; ergonomics; designed workplaces (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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