Prevalence and factors associated with musculoskeletal pain during online learning among nursing students in a university
Keywords:
muscle and skeleton, online learning, nursing students, painAbstract
During the outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019, students' learning has inevitably moved to an online platform. Consequently, this may result in body aches and pains. The objective of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to examine the prevalence of and the factors associated with musculoskeletal pain during online learning among nursing students at a university. The sample consisted of 221 (1st-4th year) nursing students. Data were collected online questionnaires, including a personal information questionnaire, a risk factor from online learning questionnaires, and a musculoskeletal disorder symptom assessment questionnaire. Data collection was carried out from May to June 2022. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and analyses of factors associated with pain level were performed using multivariate regression analysis.
The study results revealed that the mean age of the samples was 20.24 years (S.D. 1.24). The average time spent sitting or studying online was 7.10 hours/day (S.D. 2.54). Most of them were female (91.86%), and had been sitting for more than three hours (91.40%). Only 50% had 1-2 breaks. Regarding online learning equipment, 46.15% used a tablet without a separate keyboard as their primary device. Moreover, nearly two-fifths (39.37%) studied or worked online through their mobile phones. Most had musculoskeletal pain within six months (72.40%). The most painful areas were back, neck, and shoulders, respectively. The mean score on the 10-rating pain scale was 3.54 (S.D. 2.74) and 21% had repetitive chronic pain. In addition, 68.67% thought their pain was caused by sitting postures or sitting for long periods of time. It was also found that sitting in the same position for a long time was significantly associated with pain (p-value 0.02).
The results of this study demonstrate the impact of online learning on musculoskeletal pain among nursing students and the associated factor of sitting in the same position for a long time. This information can be used by educational institutions to design a guideline for appropriate online teaching and learning management to reduce further impacts.
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