Musculoskeletal disorders and ergonomic exposures in heavy machinery maintenance workers (Barranquilla, Colombia)

The main objective was to describe the occurrence of musculoskeletal symptoms and associated dysergonomic exposures in heavy machinery maintenance operatives in Barranquilla, Colombia, and to interpret their consistency with recent evidence. An observational, analytical, and cross-sectional design with a convenience sample of thirty workers was carried out, using a structured questionnaire based on and adapted from the instrument proposed by Balderas-López et al (2019), which captured sociodemographic and occupational characteristics, manual handling of loads, lifting trajectories, awkward postures in restricted access areas, and symptoms by anatomical region. The occurrence of symptoms was high, with lumbar predominance, and was accompanied by work patterns that included lifting in intermediate ranges, episodes of very heavy physical exertion, and remaining in a squatting position or with knees on the floor, plausible conditions of lumbosacral and shoulder girdle overload. Bivariate analysis showed nonsignificant trends toward a higher likelihood of symptoms in the presence of these exposures, consistent with meta-analyses and global series linking physical and mechanical demands and musculoskeletal pain. The findings support the implementation of multimodal prevention strategies focused on task and access redesign, handling aids, work organization with short breaks, and situated training in load control, as well as moving toward longitudinal studies with objective exposure measurement and clinical verification of outcomes that allow for estimating dose-response relationships and evaluating the effectiveness of interventions in real-life maintenance settings.