Impact of 10-Min Daily Yoga Exercises on Physical and Mental Discomfort of Home-Office Workers During COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the effects of 10 min/day of yoga for 1 month on musculoskeletal discomfort and mood disturbance of home-office workers. BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic forced many people to switch to teleworking. The abrupt change from an office setting to an improvised home-office may negatively affect the musculoskeletal and emotional health of workers. By providing mental and physical exercises, yoga may be effective in reducing adverse effects. METHOD: Fifty-four participants (42 women, 12 men) followed a 1-month yoga program, while 40 participants (26 women, 14 men) continued with their common work routine. The Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire was used to evaluate severity, interference with work and frequency of pain, and to obtain a total discomfort score for 25 body areas. Mood disturbance was evaluated with the Profile of Mood States questionnaire. Both groups completed both questionnaires, before and after the experimentation period. RESULTS: After 1 month, for the yoga group only, significant reductions were observed in the discomfort of eyes, head, neck, upper and lower back, right wrist, and hips/buttocks, as well as reductions in discomfort severity, frequency and interference for the neck, upper and lower back. Total mood disturbance was also significantly reduced for the yoga group only. No favorable changes occurred for the control group. CONCLUSION: The yoga intervention program appears to reduce musculoskeletal discomfort and mood disturbance of home-office workers. APPLICATION: Sedentary workers may benefit from 10 min/day of yoga during the workday to attenuate potential physical and emotional discomfort during the current pandemic and beyond.

Symptom characteristics in office workers using standing workstations: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: In some occupational groups, prolonged standing is associated with adverse symptoms. While the introduction of sit-stand workstations in office workers is increasingly common, the profile of symptom development is not known. OBJECTIVES: To identify and describe the location, intensity, quality, and timing of symptoms experienced by office workers while standing at a sit-stand workstation. METHODS: This cross-sectional observational study was performed in an university campus laboratory simulated as an office with a sit-stand workstation. Sixty-three office workers without low back pain or prior exposure to a sit-stand workstation participated. For primary outcome measures, participants recorded any symptoms of pain, stiffness, and/or fatigue on a body chart every 15 min during a 2-hour standing task. Participants rated symptom intensity on an 11-point numerical rating scale (NRS). RESULTS: Fifty-three participants (84%) experienced symptoms during the 2-hour standing task, with 30 participants (48%) reporting at least one symptom within 30 min of standing. A greater number of participants reported symptoms rated ≥2 on the NRS in the lumbar spine, lower extremity, and feet/ankle than the upper quadrant (odds ratios from 3.84 to 6.86). Mean maximal symptom intensity for the lumbar spine was greater than that for the upper quadrant and feet/ankles (incidence rate ratios: 1.46 to 1.79). CONCLUSION: Symptoms of pain, stiffness, and fatigue, especially those affecting the lumbar spine, lower extremity and feet/ankles are common in office workers who stand at a workstation. Study findings suggest that physical therapists should advise workers using sit-stand workstations to monitor symptoms and consider changing position within 30 min.

Physical Behaviours in Brazilian Office Workers Working from Home during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Compared to before the Pandemic: A Compositional Data Analysis.

Work from home has increased greatly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and concerns have been raised that this would change physical behaviours. In the present study, 11 Brazilian office workers (five women, six men; mean [SD] age 39.3 [9.6] years) wore two triaxial accelerometers fixed on the upper back and right thigh continuously for five days, including a weekend, before COVID-19 (September 2019), and again while working at home during COVID-19 (July 2020). We determined time used in five behaviours: sedentary, standing, light physical activity (LPA), moderate-to-vigorous activity (MVPA), and time-in-bed. Data on these behaviours were processed using Compositional Data Analysis, and behaviours observed pre-COVID19 and during-COVID19 were compared using repeated-measures MANOVA. On workdays during-COVID19, participants spent 667 min sedentary, 176 standing, 74 LPA, 51 MVPA and 472 time-in-bed; corresponding numbers pre-COVID were 689, 180, 81, 72 and 418 min. Tests confirmed that less time was spent in bed pre-COVID19 (log-ratio -0.12 [95% CI -0.19; -0.08]) and more time in MVPA (log-ratio 0.35, [95% CI 0.08; 0.70]). Behaviours during the weekend changed only marginally. While small, this study is the first to report objectively measured physical behaviours during workdays as well as weekends in the same subjects before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Associations among temporomandibular disorders, chronic neck pain and neck pain disability in computer office workers: a pilot study.

Neck pain is the most common musculoskeletal complaint among computer office workers. There are several reports about the coexistence of neck pain and temporomandibular disorders (TMD). However, there are no studies investigating this association in the context of work involving computers. The purpose of this study was to verify the association between TMD and neck pain in computer office workers. Fifty-two female computer workers who were divided into two groups: (i) those with self-reported chronic neck pain and disability (WNP) (n = 26) and (ii) those without self-reported neck pain (WONP) (n = 26), and a control group (CG) consisting of 26 women who did not work with computers participated in this study. Clinical assessments were performed to establish a diagnosis of TMD, and craniocervical mechanical pain was assessed using manual palpation and pressure pain threshold (PPT). The results of this study showed that the WNP group had a higher percentage of participants with TMD than the WONP group (42·30% vs. 23·07%, χ(2) = 5·70, P = 0·02). PPTs in all cervical sites were significantly lower in the groups WNP and WONP compared to the CG. Regression analysis revealed TMD, neck pain and work-related factors to be good predictors of disability (R(2) = 0·93, P < 0·001). These results highlighted the importance of considering the work conditions of patients with TMD, as neck disability in computer workers is explained by the association among neck pain, TMD and unfavourable workplace conditions. Consequently, this study attempted to emphasise the importance of considering work activity for minimising neck pain-related disability.

Prevalence, risks and severity of musculoskeletal disorder symptoms among administrative employees of a Brazilian company.

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are common among office workers. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence, risks and symptoms of MSD among office workers of a Brazilian dairy company. METHODS: Fifty office workers participated in the study. The following evaluations and questionnaires were completed: Rapid Upper Limb Assessment, Strain Index, Muscle Fatigue Assessment, Nordic General Questionnaire, and Oswestry Disability Index. RESULTS: Seventy-four percent (n = 37) of the participants had MSD symptoms. The back was most commonly affected body part (81% , n = 30), followed by the upper limbs (70% , n = 26). Fifty-three percent of the workers with low back pain had mild to moderate disability, and the risk for the hands, wrists and fingers was moderate. Changes are required to reduce the risk of MSD among the participating office workers. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of MSD symptoms was high; the back and upper limbs were most commonly affected. Data from the evaluations and questionnaires supplemented each other. The Rapid Upper Limb Assessment and Strain Index were better indicators of risk of MSD symptoms than the Muscle Fatigue Assessment. The participating office workers were exposed to moderate risk of developing MSD due to biomechanical overload and changes are required.