Posture Sensing Method Validation at the Office Workstation
Trial Snapshot
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Status
- Completed
- Enrollment
- 20
- Locations
- 2
- Primary Endpoint
- Change in Pain on the Visual Analog Pain Scale from baseline
Study Overview
Brief Summary
Office workers spend 11.6 hours per day in sedentary activities during the day, leading to increased health risks. Although there is literature on prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and work station modification for office workers, successful implementation and follow-through of evidence-based recommendations in office environments is extremely challenging. This study aims to validate various techniques for evaluating posture, particularly in the neck, shoulder, and trunk, in order to develop evidence-based feedback for the office desk user. This study will include up to 40 volunteers over the age of 18 who regularly work on computer-based tasks at a desk. Participants will be observed working in a provided work station in a variety of different working postures. Data are collected using electromyography sensors, Kinect camera, and at least two video recording cameras to obtain postural information. Measurement of joint positioning and posture will be completed using an ergonomic screening tool from images collected throughout the testing. Participants will provide information on their level of comfort throughout various body regions in response to working in various positions. This will be an iterative study with multiple positions used to test the positioning of sensors, and the development of suitable algorithms to evaluate posture. The collected data will be used to inform sensing methods for office work posture.
Detailed Description
There are more than 81 million office workers in the U.S. These office workers spend 11.6 hours per day in sedentary activities during the day. Several studies looked at workplace adjustments to decrease the health risks of sedentary office work, but there is little conclusive evidence showing that the modifications led to decreased risk of musculoskeletal pain. Ergonomic chair interventions have been found to reduce musculoskeletal symptoms and but evidence is inconclusive in supporting different chairs. Similarly, current literature on different computer adjustments (i.e. keyboard and mouse) has been inconclusive. When evaluating work stations that allow for both sitting and standing posture, prolonged static posture in either position can increase musculoskeletal discomfort. Many ergonomic interventions have become commercially available, but there is a lack of conclusive evidence showing that these interventions reduce risk for musculoskeletal pain.
The most successful interventions, meant to promote worker health, include an individualized, behavioral component. Workers who receive individualized attention, have higher overall awareness of ergonomic guidelines, demonstrate significantly better postures, and report higher productivity than their counterparts who receive group education or no intervention. Furthermore, adding real time prompts to an individualized approach can further increase the success of an intervention, with one study indicating that prompts may have up to four-fold effect on outcomes. Finally, it has been shown that the giving users the choice in how they implement ergonomic recommendations, input into methods and timing of cuing, and flexibility in adjusting their work environment demonstrate significant and sustained improvements in postures, productivity and overall well-being. This study will provide valuable input into the sensing mechanism for an intelligent workstation that will adapt the workspace in a way that will promote productivity, health and well-being through consistent behaviors to increase activity and improve posture.
This study will contribute to existing knowledge by:
- Develop sensing methods that accurately measure postural parameters.
- Develop guidelines for postural sensing (i.e. type of sensor, suitable algorithms for analysis, placement of sensor) of the trunk, neck, and upper extremities of office workers.
- Understand individual position changes and the related/associated level of comfort.
If successful, the results of this study can be used to determine posture in order to provide real-time evidence-based ergonomic feedback for the workplace to decrease risk of musculoskeletal pain for office workers.
Study Design
- Study Type
- Interventional
- Allocation
- Na
- Intervention Model
- Single Group
- Primary Purpose
- Prevention
- Masking
- None
Eligibility Criteria
- Ages
- 18 Years to — (Adult, Older Adult)
- Sex
- All
- Accepts Healthy Volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria
- •18 years old or older
- •Ability to read, speak, and converse in English
Exclusion Criteria
- •Severe limitations in range of motion through the upper extremity, trunk or neck
- •Significant musculoskeletal disorders (e.g., low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, cervical radiculopathy)
- •Neurological conditions that affect sensation
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Change in Pain on the Visual Analog Pain Scale from baseline
Time Frame: Baseline, every 10 minutes the first hour, every 15 minutes the second hour
A Visual Analog Pain Scale is a ten-centimeter long line in which participants are asked to place a mark from a minimum of 0 (no pain) to a maximum of 10 (worst pain imaginable). Participants respond to pain, discomfort, or other sensations (i.e. numbness) in their R/L Hand/Wrist, R/L Forearm/Elbow, R/L Shoulder, Neck, Upper Back, Lower Back, R/L Hip/Leg, R/L Foot.
Secondary Outcomes
- Posture on the Rapid Upper Limb Assessment(Every ten minutes the first hour, average across the second hour)
Investigators
Shawn Roll
Associate Professor
University of Southern California