What is the proper position when you work?

What is the proper position when you work?

Proper positioning is important to reduce the prevalence and prevent aggravation of the disease. Employees work with certain position for a long time. If the position is inappropriate, some kinds of musculoskeletal disease can be occurred. On the contrary says, proper positioning can improve that kinds of diseases.

Patients with cervical disorders should consider their proper positioning at the work station. Sustained spinal posturing out of the neutral zone can lead to further aggravation of the affected tissues and a perpetuation of symptoms.

The sedentary worker spending most of the day seated at a desk is more likely to encounter proper positioning challenges.

In general, the patient should be instructed to avoid those positions that typically aggravate his or her cervical or limb pain.

<Proper sitting position>

The recommended positioning at the desk or computer station is usually prescribed with approximately 90 degrees of hip, knee, and elbow flexion.

Proper distance from the computer monitor is an arm’s length measurement, which is unique to each individual. The upper 1/3 of the computer screen should be situated at eye level.

<The workers with prolonged phone use>

If workers use the telephone while working for a long time, one side of neck muscle can be stressed. Headset use can help eliminate this provocative position. 

<People who wear bifocal eyeglasses>

Individuals that require bifocal eyeglasses should be instructed to position reading materials in such a fashion as to avoid sustained cervical extension postures.  

In addition, the wrist or elbow, and preferably both, should be maintained in a supported position. This support contributed to total neutral positioning of the body and ultimately can lead to decreased stresses on peripheral nerves passing through the elbow and carpal tunnel. And proper back extension position is also important. Slight lordosis of lumbar spine can reduce of the pressure to nucleus purposus in lumbar spine. Small size of cushion or specific chair back mimicking physiologic shape of human spine can help to maintain that position.

Don’t sit over 1 hour at once

Don’t sit over 1 hour at once.
Take a break of at least 10 minutes, in a standing position. 

Sitting is the worst position that increases pressure in the lumbar disk.

Biomechanically, the activity of the lumbar muscles correlates well with intra-disk pressure. When back muscles contract, there is an associated increase in disk pressure.

These pressures change depending on spine posture and the activity under taken.

(Don’t maintain your posture like the picture in RED RECTANGLEs)

Numbers depict the intra-disc pressure. When you pick up something in a sitting position, the disc pressure is increased by double.

Adding rotation to the already flexed posture increases the disc pressure substantially.

Comparing lifting maneuvers, it has been shown that there is not a significant difference in disk pressure when lifting with the legs (i.e. with the back straight and knees bent) versus lifting with the back (i.e. with a forward flexed back and straight legs).

What decreases the forces on the lumbar spine is lifting the load close to your body because the farther the load is from the chest, the greater the stress on the lumbar spine.

If you have to work in a sitting position, don’t maintain it for a long time. Take a break of at least 10 minutes, in a standing position. It is very important to protect your lumbar disc.

If you already have lumbar disc disease, don’t maintain a sitting position for more than half an hour.

Deadlift is one of the worst exercise for patients with lumbar disc disease. If you feel pain on your back, stop that exercise immediately.

Protect the health of your disc with a good posture.