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Characteristics of neck and shoulder pain (called katakori in Japanese) among members of the nursing staff

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Orthopaedic Science

Abstract

Background

The characteristics of neck and shoulder pain (NSP), called katakori in Japanese, have not been well documented to date. The aim of this study was to clarify the characteristics of NSP through a questionnaire survey of members of the nursing staff.

Methods

The study population consisted of 484 nursing staff members of Gunma University Hospital in Japan. The questionnaire involved information on age, body mass index (BMI), gender, psychological stress at work, musculoskeletal pain at other anatomic sites (elbow/wrist, lumbar and knee), smoking history, and hypertension. If subjects had NSP, they were asked about any coexisting symptoms, the utilization of health services, and the precise location of NSP.

Results

The total study population included 393 persons after 91 persons were excluded for various reasons. The point prevalence of NSP was 68.1% (268 of 393). Age, BMI, smoking history, and hypertension showed no significant trend for the prevalence of NSP in the univariate analyses. The occurrence of NSP was significantly higher in subjects with psychological stress, elbow/wrist pain, lumbar pain, and knee pain, respectively. A multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that gender, psychological stress, elbow/wrist pain, and lumbar pain were significantly associated with the occurrence of NSP. One hundred fifty-eight of those with NSP (58.9%) reported coexisting symptoms, and the most common was headache. Fifty-seven (21.2%) of the subjects with NSP had consulted medical or health practitioners, and bone setting was the most common service provider. The most common area of NSP was the superior part of the trapezius.

Conclusions

This study confirmed that NSP, katakori in Japanese, is a prevalent problem in a nursing staff, and several factors associated with NSP were identified.

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Conflict of interest

All authors certify they have no commercial associations that might pose a conflict of interest in connection with this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Gunma University Graduate School of Medicine, 3-39-22 Showa, Maebashi, Gunma, 371-8511, Japan

    Yoichi Iizuka, Tetsuya Shinozaki, Tsutomu Kobayashi, Satoshi Tsutsumi, Toshihisa Osawa, Tsuyoshi Ara, Haku Iizuka & Kenji Takagishi

Authors
  1. Yoichi Iizuka
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  2. Tetsuya Shinozaki
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  3. Tsutomu Kobayashi
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  4. Satoshi Tsutsumi
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  5. Toshihisa Osawa
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  6. Tsuyoshi Ara
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  7. Haku Iizuka
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  8. Kenji Takagishi
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Correspondence to Yoichi Iizuka.

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Iizuka, Y., Shinozaki, T., Kobayashi, T. et al. Characteristics of neck and shoulder pain (called katakori in Japanese) among members of the nursing staff. J Orthop Sci 17, 46–50 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00776-011-0177-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00776-011-0177-5

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