Pain Status and Its Association with Physical Activity, Psychological Stress, and Telework among Japanese Workers with Pain during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Changes in working styles and physical activities, and an increase in psychological stress during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, may have affected pain conditions among workers with pain; however, these associations are still poorly understood. Therefore, we conducted a web-based, cross-sectional study to investigate these changes among Japanese workers suffering from pain. A total of 1941 workers who were aged 20-64 years and suffered from body pain within 4 weeks prior to the study were included. Information was collected using a self-reported questionnaire between July and August 2020. Among the respondents, 15% reported that their pain worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Approximately half of the workers claimed to have decreased physical activity (47%) and increased psychological stress (47%) during the pandemic. Multivariable logistic regression analyses found that telework (odds ratio 2.27, 95% confidence interval 1.68-3.06), decreased physical activity (3.18, 2.38-4.27), and increased psychological stress (2.16, 1.64-2.84) were associated significantly with pain augmentation. The group of workers who participated in telework and had decreased physical activity comprised the highest proportion of those with augmented pain. Our findings suggest that measures, which consider physical activities, psychological aspects, and working styles, to alleviate pain may be required for the working population in the future.