COVID-19 pandemic and remote teaching activities: ergonomic risks and musculoskeletal symptoms of professors at Instituto Federal Catarinense

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the musculoskeletal symptoms and the ergonomic risks in the workplaces of the professors of the Instituto Federal Catarinense (IFC). 140 professors participated by answering an online questionnaire on sociodemographic information, task performance, work environment, and musculoskeletal pain. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression for each outcome separately, using neck, right shoulder, and low back pain as dependent variables. The prevalence of pain among professors was 94.7% and the most frequent regions were the neck, lumbar spine, and right shoulder. The main ergonomic risks were mental overload (stress) and inadequate worktable and monitor. An association between neck pain and professors who had greater mental overload (stress), who do not engage in physical activity, and who use the computer for more than 20 hours a week was observed; also, between pain in the right shoulder and the professors who do not engage in physical activity, who use the computer for more than 20 hours a week, who had an inadequate workspace. Low back pain was associated with women, weekly course workload greater than 15 hours, and chronic disease. The results found indicate the need to adapt the workplace of the professors with in order to prevent pain and improve the quality of life and the quality of teaching.