[An investigation of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among sonographers in a province of China and related influencing factors].

Objective To investigate the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among sonographers in a province of China and influencing factors for WMSDs, and to provide a practical basis for the prevention and treatment of WMSDs in sonographers. Methods From November 2016 to February 2017, stratified cluster sampling was used to select 700 sonographers from 50 hospitals in this province. A self-designed questionnaire for WMSDs in sonographers was used to investigate general data and the prevalence of WMSDs, and the influencing factors for the prevalence of WMSDs were analyzed. Results The prevalence rate of WMSDs among these sonographers was 80.22%, and the prevalence rates of WMSDs in the shoulder, the neck, the waist, the back, the wrist, the elbow, the hip, the knee, and the ankle were 74.55%, 68.87%, 63.44%, 57.26%, 53.16%, 45.22%, 37.88%, 30.44%, and 29.24%, respectively. There was a significant difference in the prevalence rate of WMSDs between the sonographers with different ages and working years, and the prevalence rate of WMSDs tended to increase with the increase in age and working years (χ2=20.86 and 18.52, P 16 (OR=1.004) , weekly working hours >40 (OR=1.616) , poor physical conditions (OR=1.690) , and high work fatigue (OR=1.302) were risk factors for WMSDs in sonographers. Conclusion There are high prevalence rates of WMSDs in the shoulder, the neck, the waist, the back, the wrist, and the elbow. Sonographers should strengthen self-protection awareness, and effective preventive measures should be adopted to reduce the prevalence rate of WMSDs. Key words: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders; Sonographer; Epidemiology; Risk factor