The Pelvic Binder, SAM Sling, and T-POD provided sufficient reduction in partially stable and unstable (Tile type-B1 and C) pelvic fractures. No undesirable overreduction was noted. The pulling force that was needed to attain complete reduction of the fracture parts varied significantly among the three devices, with the T-POD requiring the lowest pulling force for fracture reduction.

A pilot study was carried out on 10 subjects to examine the effect that a desk with a 10 degree inclination had on their sitting posture while reading and writing. A continuous recording of the subjects head and trunk positions was made. Each subject was studied during two periods of 1.5 h on different days. The subject worked at a flat desk on the first day and at a desk with a 10 degree inclination on the second. On average, the position of the head in the sagittal plane was found to be 6 degrees more erect and the position of the trunk 7 degrees more erect when working at a desk with a 10 degree inclination than when working at a flat desk. The maximal decrease in load observed on the cervical spine was 35% and on the thoracic spine 95%. The angle between the head and the trunk did not change significantly when using an inclined desk. Differences in posture in the frontal plane were not observed in this study.

A study was carried out on ten subjects working with computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacture (CAD/CAM) systems to examine the effect of a new position of the VDU monitor on sitting posture. According to a biomechanical study of the neck, the position of the head in which the neck muscle forces are minimal differs from the position of the head when some commonly accepted recommendations regarding sitting posture ofVDUs are carried out, and on this basis a direction of view of 15°above the horizontal would be preferable to one of 15°below. By means of continuous recording of the positions of the head and trunk, the effect of this new position of the monitor on sitting posture was examined. Analysis of the results showed that working at a monitor placed in such a position that the direction of view was 15°above the horizontaJ resulted in a considerably better posture than the former position of the monitor: one is sitting more erect and the head is less bent forward. The active direction of view was 3°a bove the horizontal. The test subjects did not seem to prefer a greater angle. The results of this test indicate that placing the middle of the monitor at eye level results in a better sitting posture for CAD/CAM workers.

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