Abstract

ELIAS, Hussein E.; DOWNING, Raymond  and  MWANGI, Ann. Low back pain among primary school teachers in Rural Kenya: Prevalence and contributing factors. Afr. j. prim. health care fam. med. (Online) [online]. 2019, vol.11, n.1, pp.1-7. ISSN 2071-2936.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v11i1.1819.

BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) has been recognised as a common occupational problem with a high prevalence among work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Although there appears to be a high prevalence of LBP among school teachers, there is inadequate information on the prevalence and predisposing factors of LBP among primary school teachers in rural Western Kenya. AIM: To determine the prevalence, factors associated with LBP and physical disability caused by LBP. SETTING: The setting was public schools in rural Western Kenya selected by simple random sampling method. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among primary teachers from public schools using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire included information on LBP, demographic data, occupational and psychosocial factors and disability score. The 12-month prevalence, associated factors and LBP disability were analysed. RESULTS: The 12-month self-reported prevalence of LBP among primary teachers was 64.98%, with close to 70% of them reporting minimal disability. The logistic regression analysis showed that female gender (odds ratio [OR]: 1.692, p < 0.02) was associated with LBP and high supervisor support (OR: 0.46, p < 0.003) was negatively associated with LBP. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of LBP among primary school teachers in rural Western Kenya is 64.98%, with the majority of them reporting minimal disability. The identified risk factors were female gender and low supervisor support. The presence of work-related psychosocial risk factors in this study suggests a comprehensive approach in evaluation and management of LBP. Preventive measures should be in place to prevent and reduce the progression of LBP disability.

Keywords : low back pain; rural; Kenya; teachers; primary school; public schools; risk factors; disability.

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