The burden of musculoskeletal pain, associated sociodemographic factors, and disability in Pakistan

Abstract

AbstractObjectiveThe objective of this survey was to determine the burden of musculoskeletal (MSK) pain, its association with sociodemographic factors and disability in the semi‐urban community of Nain‐Sukh, Lahore.MethodsThe current article's data is taken from the COPCORD survey conducted in the community of Nain‐Sukh. After formal IRB approval, data collection was done via interview by a trained team using validated Urdu translation of COPCORD core questionnaires. Participants of both genders, >16 years, were enrolled through a random walk and quota sampling. In phase 1, sociodemographic factors were recorded. In phase 2, the impact of MSK pain on functional disability was assessed by the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (MHAQ). The data was compiled and analyzed using software SPSS version 25. The Chi‐square test was applied to determine association while generalized linear regression models to see the dependence of sociodemographic factors and MSK pain.ResultsOut of 4922 participants, 1425 (28.9%) had MSK pain, with a mean age of 35 ± 14  years, with female predominance. Illiteracy, marital status, and household work with moderate intensity were significantly associated with MSK pain. Based on the MHAQ score, the majority 769 (82.9%) had a mild disability. Odds of advancing age, illiteracy, and moderate intensity of work were statistically significant for MSK pain.ConclusionEvery fourth subject in the surveyed population had MSK pain. Musculoskeletal pain was found to be significantly associated with female gender, advancing age, household work, illiteracy, married status, and moderate nature of work. More than two‐thirds of the subjects with MSK pain had some degree of disability.