Accra: Professor Ajediran Idowu Bello, the Coordinator of Postgraduate Programmes, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Ghana, has called for multi-sectoral screening of the population for risk factors associated with musculoskeletal disorders. Musculoskeletal disorders are conditions that affect the muscles, bones, joints, and connective tissues of the human body, making it difficult for movement. They can be present at birth or develop because of injury or disease.
According to Ghana News Agency, Prof Bello expressed concern over the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and the high risks of exposure to related disorders across healthcare settings, selected basic schools, and formal mining industries. At an inaugural lecture in Accra on the topic: 'Beyond Movement: Addressing Musculoskeletal Disorders as a Public Health Imperative,' he stated that despite healthcare advancements, musculoskeletal disorders remained a leading cause of disability worldwide.
The lecture was organised by the University of Ghana to address critical gaps in musculoskeletal health within key people-centred service sectors in the country. Prof Bello emphasized that human body movement was essential for social participation, independence, and inclusion in society, as it enabled individuals to access education and other services.
He further explained that the ability to move freely was crucial not just for physical functioning but also for engaging in meaningful interactions, fostering personal development, and enhancing quality of life. Prof Bello remarked that the worst form of incarceration that could befall a person was a life without movement, due to the physical, social, emotional, and cognitive adverse effects it entails.
Physiotherapists, he noted, play a vital role in providing services aimed at developing, maintaining, and restoring maximum movement, thereby promoting overall health and quality of life. Prof Bello detailed that the human musculoskeletal system, a subset of the more complex human locomotor system, is the primary facilitator of human body movement. This system includes bones and various elements necessary for movement, such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, and supporting structures, along with their nerve and blood supplies, constituting about 75 per cent of the human body.
Globally, musculoskeletal disorders are among the leading contributors to disability, accounting for 16 per cent of all 'Years Lived with Disability.' Up to 30 per cent of the global adult population experiences chronic musculoskeletal pain. In Ghana, the prevalence of low back pain among adults is estimated at 70.1 per cent, and knee osteoarthritis accounts for 20 per cent of all musculoskeletal disorders.
