Sitmate: an android mobile application for the prevention of musculoskeletal discomfort among a business process outsourcing company workforce management personnel / The Health Sciences Journal

INTRODUCTION@#Due to COVID-19 pandemic, many have shifted into working at home which led to physical inactivity. This may cause musculoskeletal discomfort, chronic disease, muscle atrophy and spinal imbalance due to improper and prolonged sitting posture. Since mobile devices are relatively available for most of the office workers, there were still a lack of evidence-based mobile applications that can counteract the inactivity through exercises, which led to the researchers to create an application called SitMate that consists of evidence-based exercises which aimed to prevent musculoskeletal discomfort among a business process outsourcing company Workforce Management Personnel (BPO-WMP).@*METHODS@#Eleven participants (18-40 years old) full-time, work-from-home BPO-WMP were randomized into Treatment Group(TG)(n=6) and Control Group (CG)(n=5). The TG received one month intervention with the use of SitMate Application containing relaxation exercises, range of motion exercises and stretching exercises, and notifications for postural correction while the CG continued their usual working schedule.@*RESULTS@#There were no significant differences between two groups on all body parts that were measured using the Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire, and no significant differences in the intragroup pre-test and post-test scores on all body parts between TG and CG. For the intra-group post-test of the TG, there were noted improvements on the hip/buttock, right shoulder, upper back (median = 0) and right wrist (median = 1.5). There was also a noted increase in discomfort on the neck (median = 1.5) and lower back (median = 3). For the post-test of the CG, there were noted improvements on the right shoulder, right wrist (median = 0) and lower back (median = 1.5).@*CONCLUSION@#This study has shown that the SitMate application does not effectively reduce the prolonged sitting-related discomfort among the personnel after 1 month of intervention.

Sedentary behavior and cardiometabolic disease: Experimental evidence and mechanisms / 体力科学

Sedentary behavior is ubiquitous in modern lifestyles and defined as any waking behavior with an energy expenditure of ≤ 1.5 metabolic equivalents while sitting, reclining, or lying. Epidemiological evidence suggests that high volumes of sedentary behavior are independently associated with an elevated risk of cardiometabolic disease and all-cause mortality. By contrast, a growing body of experimental evidence showing the potential benefits for cardiometabolic risks of reducing and breaking up sedentary time. Therefore, recent physical activity guidelines indicate the importance of reducing and regularly interrupting prolonged sitting. In this narrative review, we summarize the findings from experimental studies that investigated the acute impacts of prolonged, uninterrupted sitting and interrupting sitting on several cardiometabolic risk factors, including vascular function, blood pressure, and glucose metabolism. Here, we highlight experimental evidence from controlled laboratory trials that may lead to a better understanding of biological plausibility, the causal structure of relationships, and potential mechanistic insight on linking sedentary behavior with adverse cardiometabolic outcomes. Our literature review collectively suggests that in addition to increasing moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity, reducing sedentary time may contribute to cardiometabolic health. However, the recent evidence remains limited and inconclusive, thus future studies are needed to develop a deeper causal and mechanistic understanding of the biological pathways through which prolonged sitting can adversely influence cardiometabolic health outcomes.

The Effect of Chair Backrest on Respiratory Function in Prolonged Sitting Position

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a chair backrest on respiratory function after prolonged sitting. METHODS: Twenty-four young healthy subjects (12 males and 12 females) volunteered to participate in this study, and were equally allocated to a backrest (n=12) or a without backrest group (n=12). A spirometer was used to measure the respiratory functions of all subjects. RESULTS: The chair with backrest group were significant difference in forced vital capacity (FVC), Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), and peak expiratory flow (PEF) after sitting for 1 hour, compared with chair without backrest group (p < 0.05). The chair with backrest group showed a significantly decreased in FVC, FEV1, and PEF. CONCLUSION: Using a chair without a backrest may help to reduce lung function deterioration as compared with a chair with a backrest.

Factores de riesgo ocupacional asociados a las várices en extremidades inferiores / Occupational risk factors associated a varicose veins in lower extremities

INTRODUCCIÓN: las varices en extremidades inferiores tienen un origen multifactorial, sin embargo se relaciona las altas prevalencias de ésta patología a factores de tipo ocupacional como la bipedestación y la sedestación prolongada, por el efecto de la gravedad que favorecería a la hipertensión venosa en extremidades inferiores. OBJETIVO: determinar los factores de riesgo ocupacionales asociados a las várices en extremidades inferiores. MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS: estudio de casos y controles, que se realizó en el Hospital Obrero de la Caja Nacional de Salud en La Paz - Bolivia, con un tamaño de muestra de 82 pacientes que se dividieron en dos grupos que correspondió a 41 casos y 41 controles, el tipo de muestreo fue no probabilístico. El análisis estadístico se realizó en el paquete estadístico IBM SPSS stadistics 19. RESULTADOS: en el análisis multivariado se encontró que la bipedestación prolongada tuvo ORa de 1,86 (IC95%: 0,57 - 6,01), la sedestación prolongada ORa de 0,14 (IC95%: 0,03 - 0,58), el uso de prendas que comprimen localmente las extremidades inferiores o incrementan la presión intraabdominal (ligueros, medias, ligas, corsé, faja, etc) obtuvo ORa de 12,12 (IC95%: 2,95 - 49,80). CONCLUSIÓN: se deben implementar medidas de prevención en los lugares de trabajo para disminuir el factor de riesgo que se asocia a las varices en extremidades inferiores como el uso de prendas de vestir que incrementan la presión intraabdominal o comprimen localmente las extremidades inferiores.

INTRODUCTION: varicose veins in lower extremities have a multifactorial origin, however the high prevalence of this disease is related to occupational factors such as prolonged standing and sitting position because the effect of gravity would favor venous hypertension in the lower extremities. OBJECTIVE: to determine the occupational risk factors associated with varicose veins in lower extremities. MATERIALS AND METHODS: case-control study, conducted at the hospital Obrero of the Caja Nacional de Salud in La Paz - Bolivia, with sample size of 82 patients, divided in two groups of 41 cases and 41 controls, the sampling was non-probabilistic. Statistical analysis was performed in the statistical package SPSS Stadistics 19. RESULTS: multivariate analysis found that prolonged standing had aOR: 1.86 (95% CI: 0.57 - 6.01), the prolonged sitting aOR of 0.14 (95% CI: 0.03 - 0.58), the wearing of locally compress the lower extremities or increased intra-abdominal pressure (suspenders, stockings, garters, corset, girdle, etc.) obtained aOR: 12.12 (95% CI: 2.95-49.80). CONCLUSION: should implement prevention measures in workplaces to reduce the risk factor that is associated with varicose veins in lower extremities such as the use of clothing that increase intra-abdominal pressure or locally compress the lower extremities.

Forensic Consideration of Pulmonary Thromboembolism Developed After Prolonged Gambling at Casino: An Autopsy Case Report / 대한법의학회지

A pulmonary thromboembolism usually results from deep vein thrombosis as a serious and fatal complication. It is well known that several risk factors are predisposed to these thrombotic events, causing sudden death. Recently, new variant forms of pulmonary thromboembolism, termed as "economy class syndrome or e-thrombosis" were reported in association with sitting for long time in aircraft seat or at computer. The authors experienced a case of death developed after prolonged gambling at casino in 46-year-old man and concluded that the cause of death was fatal pulmonary thromboembolism due to deep vein thrombosis, associated with prolonged sitting. Therefore, the author thought that this case may be contribute to another possible risk factor of life-threatening pulmonary thromboembolism and highlights the importance of predicting deep vein thrombosis after prolonged gambling in sitting position at casino in the similar mechanism of aforementioned reported cases.