Background: The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among custodians is high. We sought to compare musculoskeletal symptoms between female and male custodians and to explore how task might affect this relationship.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed among 712 custodians who completed a survey assessing upper extremity, back, and lower extremity musculoskeletal symptoms and exposure to cleaning tasks. Chi-square tests and logistic regression analyses were used to test for associations between gender, cleaning tasks, and musculoskeletal symptoms.
Results: Gender was significantly (P < 0.05) associated with musculoskeletal symptoms in χ(2) tests and multivariate analyses. The prevalence ratio of symptoms among women was roughly 50% higher than men, regardless of the tasks that workers performed.
Conclusions: The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms differed for female and male custodians and appeared to be consistent across a range of job tasks. Am. J. Ind. Med. 59:841-852, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Keywords: cleaners; disparities; gender; housekeepers; physical exposures; sex; task.
© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.