Back pain in a group of computer workers assessed in a physiotherapy unit

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Iulia Iovanca Dragoi ◽  
Florina Georgeta Popescu ◽  
Pompilia Camelia Lazurean ◽  
Ramona Anculia ◽  
Melania Ghigulescu ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: Modern society work implies computer-based activities generating back pain because of prolonged sitting positions and non-ergonomic postures. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to analyse the back-pain characteristics in a group of office workers in comparison with potential risk factors. METHODS: The design of the study was retrospective; a group of 109 computer workers with back pain was selected from a private physiotherapy unit between Jan 2018 - Dec 2019. Anthropometric, occupational and behaviour data, symptoms, the diagnosis on the first visit, previous medical diagnosis and specific physical activities were collected from medical records. RESULTS: The studied group (research sample) is formed of information technology operators, engineers and economists, had the mean age 38.91±10.25, with 14.04±9.12 years seniority at work. Most of them addressed to the physiotherapist directly, or they were referred by their family physician; 60% had MRI investigation on the first physiotherapy visit with no medical referral or diagnosis. The symptoms were not reported to the occupational physician. The back pain appeared independent of BMI; the low back pain had higher prevalence in males. Patients reported 6 months of back pain in 57,8% of all cases. The pain was favoured by continuous activity, more than 4 hours, in the sitting posture. CONCLUSIONS: A complex and interdisciplinary team that included an occupational physician, an ergonomist and a physiotherapist could prevent and control back pain in computer workers. Workplace conditions adaptation, proper physiotherapy and periodical medical check-ups could improve the health status of these workers.

Author(s):  
Fei HU ◽  
Kun ZHOU ◽  
Hongshi ZHOU

Governments all over the world are paying great attention to economic innovation and the development of design in modern society. They are spending more and more recourses on making rules for Industrial Design Policy and measuring its implementation. As a method to make macroeconomic regulation and control by the government, the effectiveness and importance of design policy has already been widely admitted. In a macro-background of the three turns of Chinese design policy, taking the design policy of Guangdong province as an example, this article will analyze how local/regional government should respond to the national design policy. Based on the investigation and analysis of the winners of the "Guangdong Governor Cup Industrial Design Competition", this paper discusses how industrial design competition as a part of the design policy to support the development of industrial design. After making a comparison with the design policy of the Yangtze River Delta area, this article tries to enhance and perfect the current policy path.


2021 ◽  
pp. 095001702110087
Author(s):  
Linda Tallberg ◽  
Peter J Jordan

Working with animals is a daily occurrence for millions of people who often complete tasks which are tainted, in spite of the work being seen as essential in modern society. Animal shelter-work is such an occupation. This article contributes to a deeper understanding of the caring–killing paradox (a dissonance that workers face when killing animals they are also caring for), through an insider ethnographic study. We find that care-based animal dirty work consists of unique ambiguities and tensions related to powerlessness, deception and secrecy in the work based on a ‘processing-plant’ framework which informs how workers deal with unwanted animals. We find competing ideologies of care and control to be foundational in this work.


1986 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Cohen ◽  
Gretchen A. Swanson ◽  
Bruce D. Naliboff ◽  
Steven L. Schandler ◽  
David L. McArthur

Author(s):  
Jing Liu ◽  
Khairul Manami Kamarudin ◽  
Yuqi Liu ◽  
Jinzhi Zou

Background: An infectious disease can affect human beings at an alarming speed in modern society, where Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has led to a worldwide pandemic, posing grave threats to public security and the social economies. However, as one of the closest attachments of urban dwellers, urban furniture hardly contributes to pandemic prevention and control. Methods: Given this critical challenge, this article aims to propose a feasible solution to coping with pandemic situations through urban furniture design, using an integrated method of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and Analytic Network Process (ANP). Eight communities in China are selected as the research sites, since people working and living in these places have successful experience preventing and containing pandemics. Results: Three user requirements (URs), namely, usability and easy access, sanitation, and health and emotional pleasure, are determined. Meanwhile, seven design requirements (DRs) are identified, including contact reduction, effective disinfection, good appearance, social and cultural symbols, ergonomics, smart system and technology and sustainability. The overall priorities of URs and DRs and their inner dependencies are subsequently determined through the ANP-QFD method, comprising the House of Quality (HQQ). According to the theoretical results, we propose five design strategies for pandemic prevention and control. Conclusion: It is demonstrated that the incorporated method of ANP-QFD has applicability and effectiveness in the conceptual product design process. This article can also provide a new perspective for pandemic prevention and control in densely populated communities in terms of product design and development.


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