Non-Invasive Continual Computer Exposure Assessment Tool

Details

• Personal Author:
  Johnson P
• Description:
  The long-term objective of this exploratory grant was to create software to continually monitor the digital signals from the mouse and keyboard in order to determine whether small, systematic changes in mouse button-click and keystroke durations occur, which may be associated with objective fatigue-related changes in the muscle. If systematic, fatigue-related changes can be detected in the digital signals from the mouse and keyboard, the operator's own computer could monitor and detect these temporal changes and then proactively notify the user that they may benefit from a change in activities, mitigating potentially adverse changes in the muscle and thereby potentially reducing the operator's subsequent chances for developing a computer-related musculoskeletal disorder. Repeatedly using the same eighteen subjects, the specific aims of this project were to: 1) determine whether keystroke duration systematically changed as the exposure to keyboard work increased and whether the temporal changes in keystroke durations paralleled objective measures of muscle fatigue - changes in muscle's force output and contraction duration in response to electrical stimulation, 2) determine whether mouse button-click duration systematically changed as the exposure to mouse work increased and paralleled objective measures of muscle fatigue, and 3) determine whether combined mouse and keyboard work cause temporal changed in keystroke and/or mouse button-click duration and paralleled objective measures of muscle fatigue. Based on the objective measures of muscle fatigue (the muscle's force response to electrical stimulation), the results indicated that intensive keyboard use, intensive mouse use, and combined intensive mouse and keyboard use all caused muscle fatigue; however, differing stages of muscle fatigue were observed. In the condition involving six hours of intensive keyboard use, keystroke durations systematically shortened paralleling the objective measures of early-stage muscle fatigue. Early-stage muscle fatigue was characterized by an increase in the force output of the muscle and a shortening of the muscle's contraction. In the condition involving six hours of intensive mouse use, systematic changes in mouse button click durations were not observed, but muscle fatigue was more pronounced, as compared to the keyboard condition. Finally, in the combined intensive mouse and keyboard condition, the muscle was fatigued, and the level of muscle fatigue was between what was measured during keyboard use (early-stage fatigue) and mouse use (intermediate-stage fatigue). Systematic changes in keystroke durations occurred and paralleled the temporal changes in muscle twitch durations indicating early-stage muscle fatigue; however, mouse button-click durations did not changed and reflect the measured changes in twitch duration. The important outcome of this study was documenting that muscle fatigue did result from intensive mouse, keyboard use and combined mouse and keyboard use. Intensive mouse use was associated with the greatest levels of muscle fatigue and paralleled injury trends seen in the workforce - a greater number and a greater severity of injuries are associated with mouse use. Preliminary results indicate that, by monitoring for systematic changes in keystroke duration, we may be able to turn the computer operator's own keyboard into an exposure assessment device which may ultimately reduce keyboard-related injuries. Using the mouse-button click duration in a similar fashion was not successful but merits further investigation. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Electromagnetic Phenomena Mining Occupational Health Radio Waves Safety
• Keywords:
  Computer Equipment Computers Exposure Assessment Fatigue Keyboards Monitoring Systems MSD Muscle Function Musculoskeletal Disorders
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-20
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20060450
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2021-100173
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, R21-OH-009088, 2012 Apr; :1-20
• Contact Point Address:
  Peter Johnson, Ph.D., Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington, 4225 Roosevelt Way NE Suite 100, Seattle, WA 98105 USA
• Email:
  petej@uw.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing ; Services
• Performing Organization:
  University of Washington
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20080901
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20110831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:1a9010313f1a5cf8f1d43878f74c7005370ca40540ad216f4d2e2c481f7d651c3fe08b56c6b6e918593b09160116e6c84bae65fb6fa643f0cd7f7274a1ae5d4e
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/218998/cdc_218998_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1017.69 KB ]