The effects of various upper-limb postures on the subjective discomfort rating and heart rate

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of various upper-limb body postures on the subjective discomfort rating and heart rate. Background: Various body postures have been evaluated by many checklists such as OWAS, RULA, and REBA, but since evaluating each body part (i.e., back, shoulder, and elbow etc.) separately, the body postures might be under or overestimated. Methods: A total of 20 participants maintained 14 postures which consist of the combinations of back, shoulder, and elbow flexion angles, and the subjective discomfort and heart rates were recorded 5 times during a sustained 15 minutes with holding a pair of dumbbell, weighing 0.5kg each. Results: The subjective discomfort was the lowest when the angle of back and shoulder were both 0ºs, while the body posture with 45º of back angle and 45º shoulder angle was rated as the most subjective discomfort. In general, the subjective discomfort ratings increased as back and shoulder flexion angles increased. In addition, the findings of heart rates showed similar results for the analyses of subjective discomfort ratings. Conclusions: when evaluating various working postures by the checklists, the evaluation should consider a correlation of each body part.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• ABSTRACT
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Method
• 3. Results
• 4. Conclusions
• 감사의 글
• 참고 문헌