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Estimating lumbar spine loading when using back-support exoskeletons in lifting tasks

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dc.contributor.authorMadinei, Samanen
dc.contributor.authorNussbaum, Maury A.en
dc.date.accessioned2023-01-18T14:14:48Zen
dc.date.available2023-01-18T14:14:48Zen
dc.date.issued2023-01en
dc.date.updated2023-01-17T14:40:46Zen
dc.description.abstractLow-back pain (LBP) continues as the leading cause of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, and the high LBP burden is attributed largely to physical risk factors prevalent in manual material handling tasks. Industrial back-support exoskeletons (BSEs) are a promising ergonomic intervention to help control/prevent exposures to such risk factors. While earlier research has demonstrated beneficial effects of BSEs in terms of reductions in superficial back muscle activity, limited evidence is available regarding the impacts of these devices on spine loads. We evaluated the effects of two passive BSEs (BackX™ AC and Laevo™ V2.5) on lumbosacral compression and shear forces during repetitive lifting using an optimization-based model. Eighteen participants (gender-balanced) completed four minutes of repetitive lifting in nine different conditions, involving symmetric and asymmetric postures when using the BSEs (along with no BSE as a control condition). Using both BSEs reduced estimated peak compression and anteroposterior shear forces (by ~8-15%). Such reductions, however, were task-specific and depended on the BSE design. Laevo™ use reduced mediolateral shear forces during asymmetric lifting (by ~35%). We also found that reductions in composite measures of trunk muscle activity may not correspond well with changes in spine forces when using a BSE. These results can help guide the proper selection and application of BSEs during repetitive lifting tasks. Future work is recommended to explore the viability of different biomechanical models to assess changes in spine mechanical loads when using BSEs and whether reasonable estimates would be obtained using such models.en
dc.description.notesSource info: BM-D-22-00354en
dc.description.versionAccepted versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier111439 (Article number)en
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2023.111439en
dc.identifier.issn0021-9290en
dc.identifier.orcidNussbaum, Maury [0000-0002-1887-8431]en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/113231en
dc.identifier.volume147en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherElsevieren
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectLow-Back Painen
dc.subjectWearable Assistive Devicesen
dc.subjectComputational Biomechanicsen
dc.subjectAnyBody™ Modeling Systemen
dc.subjectMusculoskeletal modelingen
dc.subjectPreventionen
dc.subjectPain Researchen
dc.subjectChronic Painen
dc.subjectRehabilitationen
dc.subjectBioengineeringen
dc.subjectMusculoskeletalen
dc.titleEstimating lumbar spine loading when using back-support exoskeletons in lifting tasksen
dc.title.serialJournal of Biomechanicsen
dc.typeArticle - Refereeden
dc.type.dcmitypeTexten
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Techen
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Tech/Engineeringen
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Tech/Engineering/Industrial and Systems Engineeringen
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Tech/Faculty of Health Sciencesen
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Tech/All T&R Facultyen
pubs.organisational-group/Virginia Tech/Engineering/COE T&R Facultyen

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