Abstract
Low back pain (LBP) is a common disorder that affects the working population worldwide. LBP causes more disability than any other conditions all around the world. Most existing studies focus on the occupational physical factors in association with LBP, while few focus on individual factors, especially the lack of quantitative calculation of waist comfort in biomechanics. Based on the physical statistics of Chinese men, this research used human posture analysis (HPA) to establish the waist strength formula and analyzed the waist strength during a manual material handling. It also explored the influence of weight and height of lifting objects on the L5-S1 spinal load. On this basis, a waist comfort model was proposed in combination with the recommended weight limit (RWL) recommended by NIOSH, and the parameter selection and waist comfort value were verified by Jack simulation software. The results show that pulling force of the Erector Spinae of the waist is closely related to the weight and lifting height of the object. Parameter verification and Jack software simulation results show that the force of L5-S1 is less than 3400 N, which proves that the waist force under this posture is acceptable. The developed waist comfort model can be applied to evaluate work risk, to adjust working intensity and powered exoskeleton design, aiming to decrease the prevalence of LBP.
Highlights
Low back pain (LBP) is a major public health concern for all age groups
LBP is considered as a major disease of Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), its point prevalence was up to 9.4% globally, and it was identified as the leading cause for disability according to the 2010 Global Burden of Disease Study [3]
Since the stoop posture is widely used in manual lifting, the whole process is based on the stoop posture analysis in the sagittal plane, which belongs to the static spinal load without torsion
Summary
Low back pain (LBP) is a major public health concern for all age groups. LBP can progress from a chronic pain condition to a more complex condition, resulting in adverse impacts on spinal muscles, nerves, bones, and discs in the lower back region [1]. LBP accounts for a large amount of workers’ compensation in all countries and affects the overall productivity of the society and the life quality of human [2]. LBP is considered as a major disease of Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), its point prevalence was up to 9.4% globally, and it was identified as the leading cause for disability according to the 2010 Global Burden of Disease Study [3]. LBP has attracted considerable attention both from the public health practitioners and the academia in recent years. Germany, the United States and International Labor Organization (ILO) have confirmed that LBP falls into the scope of occupational impairment, and the cost of medical treatment for LBP is estimated to exceed
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