Article Text

Protocol
Effectiveness of workplace exercise interventions in the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders in office workers: a protocol of a systematic review
  1. Carlos Tersa-Miralles1,
  2. Roland Pastells-Peiró1,2,
  3. Francesc Rubí-Carnacea1,2,3,
  4. Filip Bellon1,2,
  5. Esther Rubinat Arnaldo1,2,3,4
  1. 1Department of Nursing and Physiotherapy, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain
  2. 2Grup de Recerca de Cures en Salut, IRBLleida, Lleida Institute for Biomedical Research Dr. Pifarré Foundation, Lleida, Spain
  3. 3Grupo de Estudios Sociedad, Salud, Educación y Cultura, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain
  4. 4Center for Biomedical Research on Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Barcelona, Spain
  1. Correspondence to Dra Esther Rubinat Arnaldo; esther.rubinat{at}udl.cat

Abstract

Introduction Physical inactivity due to changes in our society towards more sedentary behaviours is leading to health problems. Increasing physical activity might be a good strategy to improve physical strength and reduce the prevalence of illnesses associated with prolonged sitting. Office workers exhibit a sedentary lifestyle with short rest periods or even without pauses during the workday. It is important to perform workplace interventions to treat musculoskeletal disorders caused by prolonged sitting and lack of movement adopted on the office setting. This article describes a protocol for a systematic review to evaluate the effectiveness of exercise interventions on office workers in their work environment.

Methods and analysis A literature search will be performed in the PubMed, CINAHL Plus, Cochrane Library, Scopus, ISI WoS and PeDRO databases for randomised controlled trials and studies published from 1 January 2010 to 31 July 2020 in English or Spanish. The participants will be office workers who spend most of their work time in a sitting position. The interventions performed will include any type of exercise intervention in the workplace. The outcome measures will vary in accordance with the aim of the intervention observed. The results of the review and the outcomes from the studies reviewed will be summarised with a narrative synthesis. The review protocol was developed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols guidelines.

Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval is not required. The review outcomes and the additional data obtained will be disseminated through publications and in scientific conferences.

PROSPERO registration number CRD42020177462.

  • occupational & industrial medicine
  • pain management
  • medical education & training
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

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Footnotes

  • Contributors The systematic review protocol was developed and conceived by CTM. RP-P was involved in the review of the manuscript contributing in the methodological aspects and the search strategy. ERA, FRC and FB have been involved in the supervision and quality assurance of the protocol.

  • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Patient consent for publication Not required.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

  • Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.