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Work-Related III Health
Published in Céline McKeown, Office Ergonomics, 2007
The only successful means of combating back pain in the office is to provide users with suitable seating and train them in how to adopt appropriate postures when working. This needs to be done in conjunction with permitting computer users to leave their workstations at regular intervals so they can walk around. This does not have to be “non-value-added” time. Companies can arrange the work so that when individuals leave their seats they are walking to a shared printer, collecting files stored in a separate room, using the photocopier, collecting their own mail from a communal in-tray at a distance from their desks, and so on. In addition, if office workers are required to handle any loads, they need to be given the training to do so safely; this training needs to focus on the typical loads they handle during the course of their work.
The Body as a Mechanical System
Published in R. S. Bridger, Introduction to Human Factors and Ergonomics, 2017
Low back pain is a nonspecific health outcome. It is not a disease, although it can be a symptom of one. It can also be the natural response of healthy tissue to biomechanical loading, in which case it disappears rapidly after the loading ceases. Back pain can also be a symptom of a debilitating, degenerative condition that leads to long-term disability. Acute back pain lasts no more than a few weeks, and is usually a response to biomechanical loading or its consequences, such as muscle fatigue. Acute pain can arise from herniated intervertebral disks, muscle tears, or ligament strains. Subacute back pain lasts up to 3 months and is indicative of a more complex picture such as a more severe injury or of reinjury of an injured part. Chronic pain is pain lasting more than 3 months and may be part of an even more complex picture in which an initial injury resulted in tissue damage that changed the mechanical function of one or more motion segments, leading to a cascade of maladaptation, as one problem leads to another. Specialist rehabilitation services may be required in these cases. Table 2.3 summarizes the known nonoccupational risk factors for back disorders (Valat et al., 1997; Rozenberg et al., 1998; Carter and Birrell, 2000). Clearly, there is not much that ergonomics alone can do to lessen the burden of chronic back pain or disability in society “as a whole” (the lifetime prevalence rate of back pain in developed countries is around 70%). However, there is strong evidence of ergonomic risk factors for some of the back pain in society and that these risk factors can be modified to reduce pain in people exposed to them (Table 2.4).
A Case Study in Predicting Treatment Outcome
Published in Richard J. Roiger, Just Enough R!, 2020
Approximately 80% of the adult population suffers from acute low back syndrome (LBS) at some point during their life. Individuals with acute low back pain may seek relief from one or several sources including physical therapists, chiropractors, massage therapists, or primary care physicians. However, most cases of LBS self-correct within a period of 1–6 weeks without specific treatment.
An ergonomics-driven QFD model to improve medical laboratory staff and patient satisfaction
Published in Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, 2022
Amer M. Momani, Tasneem Al-Shaikh, Ahmad Abdelhafiz Mumani, Omar Al-Araidah
Visual fatigue is where the employees experience eye strain, because of long hours of working in front of computer screens and the exposure to screen rays, which result in muscle strain and itching eyes. Fatigue and stress are where the employees experience general aches and pain. Musculoskeletal disorders are where the employees experience wrist pain which is caused due to typing on keyboard and using the mouse in a wrong posture. Neck pain is what the employees experience due to wrong posture, bending over the patient’s documents and reports and the flexion of the neck beyond its normal limit, which occurs because the reception windows are positioned higher than normal sight view. Lower back pain is caused by wrong posture, lack of back support, and by repetitively reaching above shoulder level to grasp patients’ documents and reports.
Musculoskeletal pain and its relation to individual and work-related factors: a cross-sectional study among Turkish office workers who work using computers
Published in International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 2022
Guzin Kaya Aytutuldu, Tansu Birinci, Ela Tarakcı
Physical inactivity is one leading factor for musculoskeletal pain [5,8,30,31]. In our study, approximately 78% of office workers who work using computers did not have a regular exercise habit, while 66% of those were inactive or less active. A recent study pointed out a significant association between the lower back and upper back pain and vigorous physical activity, with the latter being protective of back pain in sedentary-type workers [28]. The physical capacity was also found to be related to neck and lower back symptoms in office workers in a recent study [32]. Physical inactivity might be related to a higher prevalence of pain in these body regions (neck, lower back and upper extremity) especially in office workers with prolonged static work posture, working in awkward positions or performing repetitive manual tasks [28]. Also, it is well known that chronic pain had a reduced capacity for physical activity, and the majority of people with chronic pain appear to avoid physical activity, leading to more significant disabilities [30]. Therefore, it should not be underestimated that higher physical activity levels are associated with suffering less pain and more pain inhibition [33].
Relationship between musculoskeletal disorders and anthropometric indices among bus drivers in Zahedan city
Published in International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 2018
Fereydoon Laal, Rohollah Fallah Madvari, Davoud Balarak, Mahdi Mohammadi, Elahe Dortaj, Abdolali Khammar, Hossein Ali Adineh
The present study establishes anthropometric databases that can be helpful in reducing the risk of MSDs. Ergonomic interventions and postural evaluations are needed to reduce disorders among the drivers. Training programs about the ergonomics principles and regular exercise can significantly contribute to reducing musculoskeletal discomfort, especially lower back pain in workplaces. Future studies can design ergonomic seats for old buses based on the drivers’ anthropometric characteristics. Those who are in charge of purchasing vehicles should consider the ergonomic principles and anthropometric dimensions of the target population.