The Assessment of Musculoskeletal Condition and Its Relationship with Years of Service and Level of Physical and Mental Health in NEDAJA Submarine Crews of Bandar Abbas in 2016

Occupational conditions are known as one of the most important factors underlying musculoskeletal disorders. Nowadays the most common musculoskeletal disorders are spinal deformity and spinal column pain. The aim of this study was to evaluate the musculoskeletal condition and its relationship with years of service and level of physical and mental health in Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (NEDAJA) submarine crews.

In this descriptive study conducted in 2016, 300 NEDAJA submarine crews of Bandar Abbas were selected as subjects. Physical and mental health levels were evaluated using the SF-36 questionnaire and then the postural anomalies were evaluated using flexible ruler, goniometer, scoliometer, and inclinometer. Finally, the research data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (Number, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Pearson’s correlation).

The results showed there was a significant relationship between the years of service and kyphosis and forward head angles of NEDAJA submarine crews (p=0.042, r=0.374 and p=0.033, r=0.390, respectively) while this relationship was not statistically significant between the years of service and other musculoskeletal conditions (p>0.05). The results also showed there was not statistically significant relationship between musculoskeletal condition and the level of physical and mental health of NEDAJA submarine crews (p>0.05).

According to the results of this study it seems that the occupational conditions and working environment in submarines can be effective in postural deformities. These findings showed there is a need to pay more attention to the health status of submarine crews especially in the field of training and corrective exercises.