Investigation of the effect of spine health training and lumbal region support on back pain and discomfort in city bus drivers

In this study, we aimed to examine the effect of spinal health education and lumbar support on city bus drivers who suffer from low back pain and discomfort. A total of 143 city bus drivers with complaints of low back pain and discomfort participated in the study. Among these drivers, 35 were excluded due to other health problems, and 4 were excluded because they retired during the study, leaving a total of 104 participants. The average age was 43.44±6.48 years (ranging from 28 to 58 years). The drivers were divided into three groups: those who received spinal health education with a physiotherapist (35 drivers), those who received spinal health education with a physiotherapist and lumbar support (35 drivers), and a control group (34 drivers). The drivers were asked to regularly apply the education provided, and those in the lumbar support group were instructed to use the support continuously during working hours for three months. The drivers were assessed before and after the intervention. The Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) was used to analyze their posture, the Extended Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire was used to assess pain and discomfort in the musculoskeletal system, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory and Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire were also utilized. The Extended Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory, and Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire were filled out by the drivers, while the Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) was evaluated by the researcher. At the end of this study, statistically significant improvements (p<0.05) were observed in the REBA and Extended Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire results in the second group. There was a statistically significant difference (p<0.005) in the effectiveness of the interventions between the groups. It was concluded that education aimed at protecting the health of the lower back and the use of lumbar support together reduced the severity of discomfort and pain in the lower back and improved posture in city bus drivers. Keywords: City Bus Drivers; Lumbar Support; Spine Health Training