Task variation during simulated, repetitive, low-intensity work – influence on manifestation of shoulder muscle fatigue, perceived discomfort and upper-body postures

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders are increasing due to industrialisation of work processes. Task variation has been suggested as potential intervention. The objectives of this study were to investigate, first, the influence of task variation on electromyographic (EMG) manifestations of shoulder muscle fatigue and discomfort; second,...

The influence of task variation on manifestation of fatigue is ambiguous: A literature review

Task variation has been proposed to reduce shoulder fatigue resulting from repetitive hand-arm tasks. This review analyses the effect of task variation, both 'temporal (i.e. change of work-rest ratio)' and 'activity (i.e. job rotation)' variation, on physiological responses, endurance time (ET) and subjective feelings. Pubmed was searched and...

The effects of shoulder load and pinch force on electromyographic activity and blood flow in the forearm during a pinch task

The object of the current study was to determine whether static contraction of proximal musculature has an effect on the blood flow more distally in the upper extremity. Static contractions of muscles in the neck shoulder region at three levels (relaxed, shoulders elevated and shoulders elevated loaded with 4.95 kg each) were combined with...

The effects of precision demands during a low intensity pinching task on muscle activation and load sharing of the fingers

High precision demands in manual tasks can be expected to cause more selective use of a part of the muscular synergy involved. To test this expectation, load sharing of the index finger and middle finger was investigated during a pinching task. Myoelectric activation of lower arm and neck-shoulder muscles was measured to see if overall level of...

Frequency and force effects on psychophysical and myoelectric variables in low- intensity pinching tasks

Force and frequency in manual handling tasks are known risk factors for work related upper arm disorders. Three force levels and three frequencies are used to define the external load in a pinching task. The effects of these external loads on subjective and objective responses are studied. Subjective ratings poorly reflect the levels of external...