In Vivo Changes in the Lower Extremity Joints and Muscles During Prolonged Standing

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chambers AJ ; Huppert T ; Redfern M ; Tashman S
• Description:
  Prolonged standing in the workplace is a significant ergonomic problem that is directly linked to musculoskeletal injuries, health problems and high economic costs. The general hypothesis of the proposed project is that prolonged standing impacts tissues within the joints and muscles, which in-turn results in increased pain and risk of injury. However, the specific changes that occur during standing are not, as of yet, understood. The project objective was to investigate the impact of prolonged standing on in vivo changes in articular cartilage deformation within the knee joint and lower extremity muscle characteristics. A second objective was to investigate the impact of human and environmental factors on these effects. A total of 31 young adults aged 21-35 years old in two BMI groups, healthy weight and obese, participated in this study. Novel and innovative methodologies including dynamic stereo x-ray, near-infrared spectroscopy, electromyography, and biomechanical analysis were employed to assess the effect of prolonged standing on measures of joint and muscle injury risk. Additionally, the impact of obesity and flooring on these novel objective measures was examined. Time was found to be the most prominent predictor of all outcomes, including discomfort, gap distance, EMG, and NIRS. Flooring tended to display a beneficial physiological effect on prolonged standing. The response to different flooring varied depending on BMI group. This implies that human factors should be taking into account in future work including evaluation and design of discomfort, injury and fatigue reducing products. This will ensure that interventions are tailored to the individual and more successful in preventing injury and discomfort during prolonged standing. The results collected during this study will inform future endeavors to make standing more comfortable in the workplace and prevent the associated injuries. Understanding the underlying mechanisms behind musculoskeletal injuries during prolonged standing, through direct, objective measurements, will reduce injury and inform future occupational regulations. The career development and training offered by this award have provided me with training in state of the art techniques and methodologies that are not typically used in the field of ergonomics and resulted in investigator independence. This project provided critical knowledge regarding musculoskeletal changes in the lower extremities due to prolonged standing that could result in injury. This research, in addition to a series of studies that are naturally following in its path, has led to new methods of evaluating injury risk and more effective interventions to reduce musculoskeletal injuries in the workplace. Since prolonged standing is common in the workplace, the results of this research can impact multiple industry sectors including Healthcare and Social Assistance, Manufacturing, Mining, Public Safety, Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities, Wholesale and Retail Trade. The NIOSH cross-sector programs being addressed are Engineering Controls, Musculoskeletal Disorders, Prevention through Design, and Training Grants. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomechanical Phenomena Ergonomics Musculoskeletal Diseases Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Biomechanical Modeling Biomechanics BMI Body Mass Index Floors Injuries Lower Extremities MSD Musculoskeletal Disorders Obesity Physiological Effects

  More +
• 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 3 ; Pennsylvania
• 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:
  1-61
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20061440
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2022-100349
• 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, K01-OH-010759, 2019 Dec; :1-61
• Contact Point Address:
  April Chambers, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, 302 Benedum Hall, 3700 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261
• Email:
  ajchambers@pitt.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2020
• Performing Organization:
  University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20150901
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20180831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:53db57b7dbe7e75a24831488699e73f7bd78b56efaeb0202c5e61898decaaa1678add77220e7e2138662ad5b18d21a6a69d2b5e2025b06d0cb6c16ca1939f511
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219029/cdc_219029_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.47 MB ]