Influence of seat tilt motion on discomfort perception during a simulated driving activity.

Abstract

Discomfort perceived in activities where there is a prolonged sitting posture are normally compensated in a natural way by means of macro-repositioning movements in the seat. Nevertheless, evidence shows that such movements are not able to palliate discomfort due to lumbar pain. This study involves research performed to demonstrate whether induced postural changes are able to mitigate this type of discomfort during a simulated driving activity. Twenty-four subjects with lumbar pain (LBP) and without lumbar pain (WLBP) underwent 90 min of simulated driving activities while periodic variations of seat tilt (Tt) were implemented. Discomfort perception due to lumbar pain significantly decreased in the case of Tt compared with the case of WTt (without seat tilt), and significant differences were found (p = 0.02). However, treatments with Tt indicated that no substantial differences exist between LBP and WLBP subjects when considering discomfort perception due to lumbar pain and the erector spinae activity. This study revealed that periodic variations on seat tilt can help to reduce discomfort perception due to lumbar pain during driving activities, regardless of the health condition of the subject.