engleski

Correct Manual Load handling - with the aim of preventing back pain

Our body is designed for movement and physical work: for lifting, transferring, lowering, pushing, and pulling load. Also, it is designed so that physical work promotes physical health of our spine. However, in order to ensure beneficial effects of physical work on the health of our spine, the load handling technique must be correct. Importance of correct body posture while manually handling loads increases proportionally with the following factors: • Mass of the load The bigger the mas of the load, the greater the importance of correct manual handling of the load.Example: If we lift a 5kg heavy load off the floor and lower it back on the floor 2 meters away, it is highly unlikely for us to sustain an injury despite the incorrect body posture. However, if we do the same thing with a 50kg heavy load, the odds of acute as well as of gradual mechanic damage are significantly higher. Repetition The higher the number of repetitions of incorrectly executed movements, the higher the odds of sustaining mechanical damages to the body and appearance of pain. Example: If we transfer a 5kg load incorrectly 500 times a day, 5 days a week for 5 years, we are highly likely to develop mechanical damages thus causing pain. Time spent in an incorrect static position If we maintain an incorrect position of the body for a long time, we increase the chances of mechanical damages and occurrence of pain. Example: If we perform a job in an incorrect position, e.g., while squatting with the back bent for 5 minutes a day, then the odds of any serious mechanical damages are significantly lower than if we spend 5 hours a day, 5 days a week in the same position. Speed of the movement The faster we perform the work task, the more it is important for us to do it correctly as regards body posture. Example: If we lift, transfer and lower a 5kg load fast with the incorrect body posture, the odds of sustaining injury are higher than if we perform the same work at a slower pace. In other words, we do not sustain injury because we work fast, but because we work fast while keeping the incorrect body posture. When we do things fast while holding a correct body posture, the odds of injuries are minimized. Amplitude of the movement The bigger the amplitude of the movement, the more important it is to hold a correct body posture. Example: If we lift a 5 kg load off the floor and lower it back while holding the incorrect posture, the odds of getting injured are higher than if we lift and lower that same weight from the knee height. The important thing is to know that injuries do not happen because we perform tasks with big amplitudes, but because we perform work tasks of big amplitudes using mechanically incorrect movements. The movements of big amplitudes we perform holding the correct body posture are not damaging to our health. Former injuries If we already have a history of injuries, we need to pay special attention to correct body posture while manually handling loads. Example: Let us take an example of two different people – the one with the history of injuries and the other with no injury history. Their task is to lift and transfer a 5 kg load. Both persons lift and lower the load incorrectly, with their backs bent. Clearly, the person with the history of injuries is more likely to experience sharp pain than the healthy person. Age The older we are, the less resistant we are to injuries, so the importance of the correct manual handling of loads is that much greater. Example: With 20 years of age it is possible to lift and lower load with the back bent, with the injury risk being significantly lower than the one in a 40-year-old person, who has high odds of sustaining injury. If a 60-year-old person does the same work with the back bent, the risk increases tremendously. The main goal of this brochure is to indicate to the basic mechanisms that lead to injuries and to emphasize the most important differences between the correct and incorrect manual handling of loads from the aspect of body posture with regard to spe¬cific demands and tasks at the following workplaces: • Tubulars Toolman • Downhole Equipment Toolman • Warehouse worker • Retail station worker

Occupational kinesiology, manual handling, prevention, musculoskeletal disorders, low back pain, neck pain, correct movement habits

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