Differences in the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among female and male custodians.

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 χ2 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.