International Journal of Health Sciences & Research (www.ijhsr.org) 131 Vol.8; Issue: 10; October 2018 International Journal of Health Sciences and Research www.ijhsr.org ISSN: 2249-9571 Original Research Article Prevalence of Low Back Pain in Sitting Vs Standing Postures in Working Professionals in the Age Group of 30-60 Divya Pillai 1 , Dr. Purti Haral 2 1 FinalYear BPT, School of Physiotherapy, D.Y. Patil University, Navi Mumbai, India. 2 Associate Professor, School of Physiotherapy, D.Y. Patil University, Navi Mumbai, India. Corresponding Author: Dr. Purti Haral ABSTRACT Low back pain is one of the most commonly experienced musculoskeletal disorders in recent times. Sitting and standing occupations require individuals to remain in static postures for longer durations which may lead to discomfort in their lower back. It may interfere with an individual’s quality of life and performance at work. The primary focus of this study is to find out if there is an association between sitting and standing working postures and low back pain. Method: A cross sectional survey was carried out among working professionals having occupations which required predominant sitting or standing in the age group of 30-60 years using a pre-validated self- administered questionnaire. 100 individuals were invited in the study out of which 50 individuals had working postures that involved sitting whereas 50 individuals had standing working postures. Result: 76% of individuals with sitting occupation and 70% of individuals with standing occupations experience low back pain. 63.15% of individuals with sitting occupations and 60% of individuals with standing occupations feel that improper ergonomics might be one of the causes of their low back pain. Conclusion: Data analysis concluded that low back pain was more prevalent in individuals with sitting working postures than standing. The percentile difference between both the groups was 6%; it can be noted that prolonged sitting and standing both have adverse effects which may result in complaints of low back pain. Keywords: Low back pain, Prevalence, Musculoskeletal disorders, sitting posture, standing posture. INTRODUCTION Musculoskeletal conditions arise throughout an individual’s life at various points of time. Out of the many problems suffered, low back pain is one of the most frequently reported conditions. Low back pain is defined as “pain and discomfort, localised below the costal margin and above the inferior gluteal folds, with or without leg pain” and can be categorized into 3 types- Acute, Sub-acute and Chronic. Acute low back pain is defined as an episode of pain persisting for less than 6 weeks; sub-acute as pain persisting between 6 and 12 weeks; chronic as pain persisting for 12 weeks or more. [1] Sitting and Standing are two of the most common postures attained during various occupations. Occupations which involve sitting include desktop jobs, computer professionals, bankers, receptionists, chartered accountants. Whereas occupations that require standing are that of beauticians, security guards, teachers, pharmacists. These jobs involve working in the same posture for long periods of time, which is why it is very important to maintain proper ergonomics during work. The purpose of this study is to find out the prevalence and to determine which working postures among sitting and