Comparative Analyses of Hamstring Tightness and Sitting Duration Among Professional and Non-Professional Drivers in a Nigerian Community

This study investigated the prevalence of hamstring tightness among male professional, non-professional and non-drivers in a Nigerian community. It also compared the hamstring tightness of the three classes of participants.
Ethical clearance was granted for the study. The design was a mixed-method of cross-sectional and comparative designs. Convenience sampling technique was used to select 150 participants who are commercial drivers (professional), private car owner who drives (non-professional) and non-drivers. Fifty individuals were recruited for each class. The hamstring tightness of the participants was determined using the Active Knee Extension Test (AKET) which was measured in degrees. Descriptive statistics and Inferential statistics of Paired t-test, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to analyse the data obtained. The level of significance was set at 0.05.
The result showed that only 16% of the non-drivers had hamstring tightness while 78% and 54% of the professional and non-professional drivers were with hamstring muscle tightness in both lower limbs. The hamstring muscle tightness was significantly higher among the driver than non-drivers (p= 0.000) and the non-professional drivers (p = 0.015). The driving experience of the professional drivers (18.90 ± 6.06 years) was significantly higher than that of non-professional drivers (6.08 ± 4.13 years), (t = 81.538, p = 0.000). The duration of sitting of the professional drivers was significantly higher than that of the non-professional drivers and non-drivers (F = 74.39, p = 0.000). There was no significant relationship between BMI and prevalence of hamstring tightness across the groups.
In conclusion, the prevalence rate of hamstring muscle tightness was higher in professional than non-professional drivers and non-drivers. Also, the duration of sitting was significantly higher among the professional driver.