Neck postures and cervical spine loading among microsurgeons operating with loupes and headlamp

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chapman M ; Nimbarte AD ; Sivak-Callcott JA ; Zreiqat M
• Description:
  Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders in the neck are common among microsurgeons who operate with loupes and headlamps. Published surveys indicate that microsurgeons across many subspecialties believe that loupes contribute to neck musculoskeletal disorders. However, objective data on head-neck posture and cervical loading during surgical tasks performed using loupes and headlamps are currently lacking. Purpose: This study will assess exposures to physical risk factors for neck musculoskeletal disorders during surgical tasks performed using loupes and headlamp. Methods: A field study was performed in operating rooms to measure the head-neck postures commonly used by three ophthalmic plastic surgeons; a subset of microsurgeons. Posture data were used as input to a biomechanical model to estimate cervical spine loading. Results: During nearly 85% of the time spent operating, surgeons adopted asymmetrical head-neck postures characterized by either bending or rotation of >15 degrees, coupled with flexion of >15 degrees. Postures consisting of flexion >45 degrees, 15 degrees-30 degrees bending, and 15 degrees-45 degrees rotation produced significantly higher biomechanical loading of the cervical spine compared to near-neutral postures (i.e., flexion, bending and rotation between 0 degrees and 15 degrees). This loading was further exaggerated by the weight of loupes and headlamp. Conclusions: Non-neutral head-neck postures demanded by the dexterous operating tasks performed using loupes and headlamps could be important biomechanical risk factors for cervical musculoskeletal disorders among microsurgeons. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomechanical Phenomena Environmental Exposure Health Personnel Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Loupes Biomechanics Body Mechanics Exposure Levels Headlamp Microsurgeon MSD Muscles Muscle Stress Musculoskeletal Disorders Musculoskeletal System Musculoskeletal System Disorders Neck Musculoskeletal Disorder Posture Risk Factors Surgeons Task Performance

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• ISSN:
  2157-7323
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  215-223
• Volume:
  1
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049344
• Citation:
  IIE Trans Occup Ergon Hum Factors 2013 Sep; 1(4):215-223
• Contact Point Address:
  Ashish D.Nimbarte, Industrial and Management Systems Engineering, P.O. Box 6070, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
• Email:
  Ashish.Nimbarte@mail.wvu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• Performing Organization:
  West Virginia University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  IIE Transactions on Occupational Ergonomics and Human Factors
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:97ab3ccdeaec396facaddeda94d1720a6ef6b01bb1c2e1a943c55b7b81a13d2a6a8877c1980ec2381ed544dcc6a64fdf9df8e7cf6b0f1b4369d82fabe795c166
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/203811/cdc_203811_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 422.70 KB ]