Prevalence and Risk Factors of Low Back Pain among Nurses in a Thai Public Hospital
Chuliporn Sopajareeya MS*, Chukiat Viwatwongkasem PhD**, Punyarat Lapvongwatana PhD*, Oisaeng Hong PhD***, Surintorn Kalampakorn PhD*
Affiliation : * Department of Public Health Nursing, Faculty of Public Health, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand ** Department of Biostatistics, Faculty of Public Health, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand *** School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, USA
Objective : To determine the prevalence and risk factors causing low back pain in Thai nurses working in a
public hospital.
Material and Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 265 Thai Hospital nurses between July
and August 2008. A self-reported questionnaire was used to collect the data onsite. Risk factors including
personal factors, working factors, job stress, health behavior, and work environment were measured. Data
were analyzed by frequency distribution, mean, standard deviation, and logistic regression.
Results : The prevalent rate of low back pain based upon the nurses’ report in the previous 12 months was
61.5%. Logistic regression analysis indicated that moving patients in bed without assistance and a lack of
back muscle exercise were the significant risk factors causing low back pain among nurses (p <0.05).
Conclusion : The prevalence of low back pain among Thai Hospital nurses was high. Further steps should be
taken to prevent LBP by designing and implementing preventive factor-based interventions.
Keywords : Prevalence, Risk factors, Low back pain, Hospital nurses
