Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of commercially available friction-reducing patient-transfer devices in reducing biomechanical stresses on caregivers and patients. Background: Caregivers suffer from high prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, which is associated with manual patient handling. However, there is not enough information available on the efficacy of various friction-reducing devices in reducing biomechanical stresses in the upper extremities and low back. Method: During patient-transfer tasks performed by 20 caregivers, we measured hand force; shoulder and trunk posture; shoulder moment; muscle activity in the flexor digitorum superficialis, extensor digitorum communis, biceps, triceps, trapezius, and erector spinae; and usability ratings from four devices: a draw sheet, a repositioning sheet, a slide board, and an air-assisted device. In addition, triaxial head acceleration of mock patients was measured to evaluate patients’ head acceleration. Results: The slide board and air-assisted device significantly reduced hand force (p < .001), shoulder flexion (p < .001), shoulder moment (p < .001), muscle activities of caregivers (p < .004), and patients’ head acceleration (p < .023) compared with the draw sheet. However, no significant differences in biomechanical measures were found between the repositioning and draw sheets. The air-assisted device consistently showed the lowest biomechanical stresses and was most preferred by participants. Conclusion: Reduction in caregivers’ biomechanical stresses and mock patients’ head acceleration indicates that a slide board and an air-assisted device can be effective engineering controls to reduce risk of injury. Application: The study results can provide a recommendation for engineering controls to reduce biomechanical stresses for both caregivers and patients.

中文翻译：

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市售的减少摩擦的患者转移设备可减轻护理人员上肢和下背部的生物力学应力。

目的：本研究的目的是评估可商购的减少摩擦的患者转移装置在降低护理人员和患者的生物力学压力方面的功效。背景：护理人员患有与工作有关的肌肉骨骼疾病的高患病率，这与患者的手动处理有关。但是，关于减少各种摩擦的装置在减少上肢和下背部的生物力学应力方面的功效，没有足够的可用信息。方法：在由20位护理人员执行的患者转移任务中，我们测量了手的力量；肩膀和躯干姿势；肩膀时刻 浅指屈肌，指伸伸肌，二头肌，三头肌，斜方肌和竖脊肌的肌肉活动; 以及四种设备的可用性等级：图纸，重新定位表，滑板和空气辅助装置。此外，还对模拟患者的三轴头部加速度进行了测量，以评估患者的头部加速度。结果：滑板和空气辅助装置显着降低了手力（p <.001），肩部屈曲（p <.001），肩部力矩（p <.001），看护者的肌肉活动（p <.004），与图纸相比，患者的头部加速度（p <.023）。但是，在重新放置和图纸之间没有发现生物力学措施上的显着差异。空气辅助装置始终显示出最低的生物力学应力，是参与者最喜欢的。结论：护理人员的生物力学应力的降低和模拟病人头部的加速表明，滑板和空气辅助装置可以作为有效的工程控制措施来降低受伤风险。应用：研究结果可为工程控制提供建议，以减少护理人员和患者的生物力学应力。