Introduction:

In the health care sector, the execution of standing activities is common; however, it is an issue that receives little attention, despite the negative effects that can be generated in the health of workers.

Objective:

To analyze the variation of musculoskeletal pain in the lower extremities and lower back, and the variation of volume in the legs in health care workers who perform their activities while standing during a working day.

Materials and methods:

A cross-sectional study in which the perception of musculoskeletal pain was recorded in the following body segments: lower back and right and left side of the thigh-hip, knee, leg and ankle-foot, and the circumference was measured to calculate the volume of the legs with the Gulick II tape measure in 21 health care sector workers. Recordings and measurements were taken during the first and last hour of an 8-hour workday.

Results:

In all body segments the perception of musculoskeletal pain and the volume in both legs increased at the end of the working day compared to the beginning. The body segments left thigh-hip, right ankle-foot and the volume in both legs increased significantly.

Discussion:

The results obtained are similar to studies with experimental designs, with the difference that our study was developed under real conditions without variables control.

Conclusions:

This study shows how activities in the health care sector executed during prolonged standing times can cause musculoskeletal pain in the lower extremities and lower back in workers, as well as an increase in the legs volume.

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