Prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and its relation to depression among workers in kindergarten

BACKGROUND: Working in a closed environment for more than 7-8 hours can affect both psychological and physical health among kindergarten workers.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) and depression as well as the correlation between them, if any, among kindergarten workers.
METHODS: In a cross-sectional observation, one hundred and five healthy female staff members (age: 34.27±7.01 year, working duration: 7.42±0.81 hr/d, BMI: 24.50±2.61 kg/m2 (mean±SD)), who have had at least one year of working experience, were selected randomly from 10 kindergartens. The subjects completed both the Cornell musculoskeletal and Patient Health (PHQ-9) questionnaires to enable the assessments of MSD and depression scores accordingly. The correlation between both questionnaires was then measured to find any links. To assess the reliability of Farsi-language versions of the Cornell questionnaire and PHQ-9, the Inter-class Correlation Co-efficient (ICC) was measured through test-retest with 1-week delay and the prevalence of MSD and depression were subsequently assessed as well.
RESULTS: The Inter-class Correlation Co-efficient (ICC) illustrated that the Farsi version of MSD instruments showed high levels of repeatability. The ICC coefficient was (0.932-0.987, p