Index of severity of musculoskeletal symptoms in keyboardists

Abstract Introduction: Musicians may present musculoskeletal pain, weakness, numbness, and tingling due to repetitive exercises. Objective: To evaluate the severity index of musculoskeletal symptoms (MS) in keyboard players. Method: A cross-sectional study including volunteers of both sexes, aged between 18 and 40 years, who performed professionally for at least 2 years, played the keyboard for at least 3 hours a week, and did not present previous history of trauma or rheumatic, neurological, and systemic diseases. The MS and its severity index were evaluated using the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire and the intensity was assessed on a scale of 4. The difference between the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain according to the anatomical region was analyzed using Fisher’s exact test. For all analyses, a significance level of 5% was adopted. This research was conducted after the ethics committee approval (No. 2,627,609). Results: Thirty-nine volunteers with discomfort were evaluated. Pain in the thoracic and lumbar spine in the last 12 months was most common (n = 27, 69.24%; p < 0.031), and in the last seven days, lumbar spine pain occurred in 12 (30.76%; p < 0.001). A severity index of 2 was the most frequent (n = 21, 54%). Conclusion: Keyboardists present with MS mainly in the vertebral column, and the severity of the symptoms is significant, suggesting the importance of prevention and treatment of MS before their onset.