Ergonomic Risk Assessment of Hairdressers Using Rapid Entire Body Assessment

Abstract

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) are one of the most prevalent causes of occupational injury and disability in both developed and developing nations, affecting a wide range of jobs. Hairdresser in their careers faces many harmful factors, including WRMSDs, especially in the neck, waist and shoulder areas. The study groups comprised 5 healthy males and 8 healthy female participants that work at the hair dresser saloons in Turkey. Hair-coloring and hair-cutting were the most common tasks completed by participants. The population ranged in age from 18 to 45 years old. The respondents' average age, height, and weight, as well as their standard deviations were 33.15 ± 8.97 years, 166.38 ± 8.84 cm, and 68.31 ± 10.14 kg, respectively. The aim of this research was to investigate the individual and occupational risks associated with the tasks on the prevalence and consequence of WRMSDs. In this descriptive analytical study, the risk of WRMSDs was evaluated using the Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) method. The REBA results showed that working postures should be changed as soon as possible.