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Kanaan S1, Almhdawi K1
1Jordan University of Science and Technology, Rehabilitation Sciences, Irbid, Jordan
Background: Neck pain and disability are common musculoskeletal disorders across the life span including young adults. Neck disability in working forces has been shown to be associated with multiple factors including work related and non-work related factors. However, there is limited studies investigated factors associated with neck disability in university students that investigated academic related and non-academic predictors.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine multiple factors including academic, psychosocial, and quality of life factors that might predict perceived neck disability in undergraduate medical students. We hypothesized that several academic, psychosocial, and quality of life factors would be significant predictors of perceived neck disability in undergraduate medical students.
Methods: A cross sectional survey, of undergraduate medical students in their first 3 years of study, was conducted at Jordan University of Science and Technology in 2017. Online survey was sent to 592 medical students to collect socio-demographic data (age, gender, body mass index, nationality, residency, transportation, and employment), academic-related data (major satisfaction, grade point average (GPA), self-evaluation of major difficulty, and satisfaction with major), and life style and general health-related data (checking smart phone frequency, use of smart phone before sleep, health self-evaluation, diet self-evaluation, smoking habits, and diagnosis of medical and psychological condition). In the survey, the students completed Arabic Translation of Neck Disability Index (NDI), the SF-12 Health Survey Questionnaire, Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS 21), and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Descriptive statistics were used to calculate the mean, standard deviation, and frequencies. A multiple linear regression model was conducted to investigate the predictors of NDI.
Results: A total of 547 students (92.4% of the participants) completed the study (1st year (n=46), 2nd year (n=188), 3rd year (n=313) and 53.2% of the students were females. The average of GPA was 76.27±9.27. A total of 33.3% of students rate their health as excellent, 62.7% as good, and 4.0% as poor, while only 5% of students were employed. The average scores for the clinical outcomes were as the following: NDI (8.42±10.21), DASS anxiety score (6.78±6.68), DASS stress score (13.44±8.66), DASS depression score (10.93±9.08), PSQI (5.80±3.08), SF-Physical Component (16.63±2.59), and SF-Mental Component (18.87±4.31). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that GPA (B= -.07, p =.001), being employed (B= 6.37, p= .007), poor health self-perception (B= 1.39, p= .048), DASS anxiety score (B= .377, p .001), SF-Physical Component (B= -.66, p .001), and PSQI (B= 1.01, p .001) were significant predictors of NDI. The model explained 39.8% of the variation in the NDI.
Conclusion(s): Lower GPA, being employed, being unhealthy, having a high anxiety, having low physical health, and poor sleep quality all can be considered as a risk factors of increased neck disability in undergraduate medical students. Future research should investigate the effect of academic counseling, preventive and therapeutic measures, and life style modification on students' neck disability.
Implications: Academic and psychological counseling would improve disability due to neck. Students counseling regarding healthy habits, measures to improve general health and sleep quality will improve students' ability in managing their study life functional requirement.
Keywords: Disability, Spine, Students
Funding acknowledgements: The study was not funded
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine multiple factors including academic, psychosocial, and quality of life factors that might predict perceived neck disability in undergraduate medical students. We hypothesized that several academic, psychosocial, and quality of life factors would be significant predictors of perceived neck disability in undergraduate medical students.
Methods: A cross sectional survey, of undergraduate medical students in their first 3 years of study, was conducted at Jordan University of Science and Technology in 2017. Online survey was sent to 592 medical students to collect socio-demographic data (age, gender, body mass index, nationality, residency, transportation, and employment), academic-related data (major satisfaction, grade point average (GPA), self-evaluation of major difficulty, and satisfaction with major), and life style and general health-related data (checking smart phone frequency, use of smart phone before sleep, health self-evaluation, diet self-evaluation, smoking habits, and diagnosis of medical and psychological condition). In the survey, the students completed Arabic Translation of Neck Disability Index (NDI), the SF-12 Health Survey Questionnaire, Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS 21), and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Descriptive statistics were used to calculate the mean, standard deviation, and frequencies. A multiple linear regression model was conducted to investigate the predictors of NDI.
Results: A total of 547 students (92.4% of the participants) completed the study (1st year (n=46), 2nd year (n=188), 3rd year (n=313) and 53.2% of the students were females. The average of GPA was 76.27±9.27. A total of 33.3% of students rate their health as excellent, 62.7% as good, and 4.0% as poor, while only 5% of students were employed. The average scores for the clinical outcomes were as the following: NDI (8.42±10.21), DASS anxiety score (6.78±6.68), DASS stress score (13.44±8.66), DASS depression score (10.93±9.08), PSQI (5.80±3.08), SF-Physical Component (16.63±2.59), and SF-Mental Component (18.87±4.31). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that GPA (B= -.07, p =.001), being employed (B= 6.37, p= .007), poor health self-perception (B= 1.39, p= .048), DASS anxiety score (B= .377, p .001), SF-Physical Component (B= -.66, p .001), and PSQI (B= 1.01, p .001) were significant predictors of NDI. The model explained 39.8% of the variation in the NDI.
Conclusion(s): Lower GPA, being employed, being unhealthy, having a high anxiety, having low physical health, and poor sleep quality all can be considered as a risk factors of increased neck disability in undergraduate medical students. Future research should investigate the effect of academic counseling, preventive and therapeutic measures, and life style modification on students' neck disability.
Implications: Academic and psychological counseling would improve disability due to neck. Students counseling regarding healthy habits, measures to improve general health and sleep quality will improve students' ability in managing their study life functional requirement.
Keywords: Disability, Spine, Students
Funding acknowledgements: The study was not funded
Topic: Musculoskeletal: spine; Occupational health & ergonomics; Education: clinical
Ethics approval required: Yes
Institution: JUST University
Ethics committee: Human Subjects Committee
Ethics number: 24/92/2015
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
