The Strain Index: A Proposed Method to Analyze Jobs For Risk of Distal Upper Extremity Disorders

Moore, James S.; Garg, Arun

doi:10.1080/15428119591016863

Cited by 539 publications

(109 citation statements)

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“…The SI is a method for evaluating jobs to determine whether they expose workers to increased risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders of the distal upper extremity (DUE)12 ) . The DUE is defined as the elbow, forearm, wrist, and hand.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Risk Factors for Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Radiological Technologists

Kim

2014

J Phys Ther Sci

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[Purpose] The aim of this study was to analyze, through ergonomic analyses, those motions most used by radiological technologists that can cause musculoskeletal disorders. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 7 radiological technologists with work experience in hospitals for more than 5 years. For the analysis of working postures, we simulated the work posture of radiological technologists when moving patients, when pushing or pulling an apparatus, when conducting ultrasonography, and when handling a mouse for MRI were analyzed. [Results] In this study, the burdens on the radiological technologists’ waists were shown to be high when they were moving patients for a CT scan. During mouse handling for an MRI scan, large burdens were imposed on the neck. In the case of ultrasonography working postures, larger burdens on the leg and neck were found when the patient’s examination sites were located further away. The assessment of working postures when pushing a portable radiation apparatus showed that burdens on the musculoskeletal system increased as the weight of the apparatus increased. [Conclusion] The musculoskeletal disorders of radiological technologists occur in various regions of their bodies but occur most frequently in the shoulder and the lumbar region. Therefore, hospitals need to be educated regarding the concept of musculoskeletal disorders.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Risk Factors for Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Radiological Technologists

Kim

2014

J Phys Ther Sci

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“…The strain index (21) was calculated from observer-rated values of efforts per minute, speed of work, and posture, self-report identification of task duration, and intensity of effort using the VAS for hand fatigue, and video analysis of duration of exertion while in heavy pinch or power grip (table 2). Three methods were used to estimate ACGIH-TLV for HAL scores (10) by task for each individual and each hand.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

1st place, PREMUS best paper competition: workplace and individual factors in wrist tendinosis among blue-collar workers − the San Francisco study

Harris

Eisen²,

Goldberg³

et al. 2011

Scand J Work Environ Health

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Objective Workplace studies have linked hand/wrist tendinosis to forceful and repetitive hand exertions, but the associations are not consistent. We report findings from a prospective study of right wrist tendinosis among blue-collar workers. Methods Workers (N=413) at four industries were followed for 28 months with questionnaires and physical examinations every 4 months to identify incident cases of right wrist tendinosis. Exposure assessment of force and repetition were based on field measurements and video analysis to determine repetition rate and the percent time (% time) in heavy pinch (>1 kg-force) or power grip (>4 kg-force). All exposure variables were measured at the level of the individual and task. For workers responsible for >1 task, a time-weighted average exposure was calculated based on task hours per week. A proportional hazards model was used to assess the relationship between exposures and incidence of wrist tendinosis. Results During the 481 person-years of follow-up, there were 26 incident cases of right wrist tendinosis [incidence rate (IR) 5.40 cases per 100 person-years]. Adjusting for age, gender, and repetition, wrist tendinosis was associated with % time spent in heavy pinch [hazard ratio (HR) 5.01, 95% CI 1.27–19.79]. Composite exposure measure American Conference of Industrial Hygienists Threshold Limit Value (ACGIH-TLV) for hand activity level (HR 3.95, 95% CI 1.52–10.26) was also associated with the outcome for the medium-exposure group using video-based total repetition rate. Conclusions The workplace factors predicting wrist tendinosis were time-weighted average values of % time spent in heavy pinch and the ACGIH-TLV for Hand Activity Level. The % time spent in power grip was not a significant predictor, nor were any measures of repetition. An exposure–response relationship was observed for the % time spent in heavy pinch. These findings may improve programs for preventing occupational wrist tendinosis.

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“…The developers of the assessment defined mono-task work as a predictable pattern of work elements (or subtasks) reoccurring throughout the work shift (ACGIH, 2005; Latko et al, 1997). This definition of mono-task work differs from the one presented by Moore and Garg (1995) during their description of a similar assessment tool, the Strain Index, where they equated mono-tasks with single exertion tasks (Moore and Garg, 1995). More often than not, tasks are comprised of subtasks requiring different levels of exertion rather than a single level of exertion, and these are called complex tasks (Bao et al, 2009; Garg and Kapellusch, 2011; Kapellusch et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Inter-rater reliability of cyclic and non-cyclic task assessment using the hand activity level in appliance manufacturing

Paulsen

Schwatka

Gober

et al. 2014

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics

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This study evaluated the inter-rater reliability of the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH®) hand activity level (HAL), an observational ergonomic assessment method used to estimate physical exposure to repetitive exertions during task performance. Video recordings of 858 cyclic and non-cyclic appliance manufacturing tasks were assessed by sixteen pairs of raters using the HAL visual-analog scale. A weighted Pearson Product Moment-Correlation Coefficient was used to evaluate the agreement between the HAL scores recorded by each rater pair, and the mean weighted correlation coefficients for cyclic and non-cyclic tasks were calculated. Results indicated that the HAL is a reliable exposure assessment method for cyclic (r̄-barw = 0.69) and non-cyclic work tasks (r̄-barw = 0.68). When the two reliability scores were compared using a two-sample Student's t-test, no significant difference in reliability (p = 0.63) between these work task categories was found. This study demonstrated that the HAL may be a useful measure of exposure to repetitive exertions during cyclic and non-cyclic tasks. Relevance to industry Exposure to hazardous levels of repetitive action during non-cyclic task completion has traditionally been difficult to assess using simple observational techniques. The present study suggests that ergonomists could use the HAL to reliably and easily evaluate exposures associated with some non-cyclic work tasks.

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The Strain Index: A Proposed Method to Analyze Jobs For Risk of Distal Upper Extremity Disorders

Cited by 539 publications

References 0 publications

Analysis of Risk Factors for Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Radiological Technologists

Analysis of Risk Factors for Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Radiological Technologists

1st place, PREMUS best paper competition: workplace and individual factors in wrist tendinosis among blue-collar workers − the San Francisco study

Inter-rater reliability of cyclic and non-cyclic task assessment using the hand activity level in appliance manufacturing

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