When Helping Hurts: A Survey of Performance-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Music Therapists

Objective: This study examined the rate of performance-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMD) in music therapists. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was sent to all actively board-certified music therapists in the United States. Results: A provisional estimate of 84% ( n =642) of this sample of music therapists reported experiencing PRMD in their lifetime, with wrists/hands being most injured. Risk factors associated with increased odds of injury included multiple occupational factors and job stress. Most music therapists reported experiencing mild disability in the past week. A variety of psychological factors were associated with higher levels of current disability while one social factor contributed to lower current disability scores. Conclusions: Occupational injury in music therapists is high with a variety of work-related risk factors. Despite when they were initially injured, most participants were still working with mild levels of disability.