The prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in workers of the Albufeira City Council

This study aimed to assess the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain among Albufeira City Council workers, as well as the figure for chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CWP). From May to July 2023, Albufeira City Council workers were invited to complete an online or in-person questionnaire that included information about their age, gender, and work department. The Standardised Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire, in Portuguese, was used to assess musculoskeletal pain complaints. CWP was defined as having pain in at least four different body areas. The total number of questionnaires was 958 (295 online and 684 in-person). In total, there were 697 females and 261 men, with an average age of 49.34±9.85 years. The lower back (57.2%) and neck (51.2) have the highest prevalence followed by shoulder (44.4%) and wrist/hand (39.8%). These were also the most painful areas, with a moderate pain intensity, being higher for lower back (5.76) followed by neck (5.16). Except for the elbow and upper back, all the other areas affected more than half of the symptomatic workers during their normal activities. Nearly 40% of the workers experienced pain in four or more body areas. The current study found that Portuguese workers from the Albufeira City Council had a significant prevalence of musculoskeletal pain, including chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain. The pain intensity was moderate across all body areas, and more than half of the workers mentioned the pain interfered with their normal activities.