Comparison of burnout and musculoskeletal disorders among computer users and office workers

Objective: Psychological stresses, increased incidence of musculoskeletal disorders, inactivity and fatigue are considered to be the adverse effects of technological development, despite increased production and efficiency. The purpose of this study was to determine and compare burnout and musculoskeletal disorders in computer users and other office workers. Materials & Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 426 office workers (40% male and 60% female) who were divided into two groups of user and non user, based on the use of computers in a week. Burnout and the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders are compared between the two groups. Results: In total sample, the findings demonstrated that the highest rate of burnout was related to individual quality reduction (29.2%) and the lowest was related to depersonalization (4.6%). There was no significant difference between users and non users computer in the three dimensions of burnout. A significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of musculoskeletal disorders in neck (P=0.03), right shoulder (P=0.03) thorax (P=0.44), right wrist (P=0.03) so that the computer user was more at risk of musculoskeletal disorders. Conclusion: According to the results, rate quality personal reduction and also musculoskeletal pain in the office workers is relatively high which requires ergonomics guidelines to improve the quality of working life and to prevent the development of causal risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders