An Exploration of the Influence of Non-Biomechanical Factors on Lifting-Related LBP

Nic Saraceni (), Amity Campbell, Peter Kent, Leo Ng, Leon Straker and Peter O’Sullivan
Additional contact information
Nic Saraceni: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia
Amity Campbell: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia
Peter Kent: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia
Leo Ng: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia
Leon Straker: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia
Peter O’Sullivan: Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Bentley 6845, Western Australia, Australia

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 3, 1-18

Abstract: Objective: The primary objective was to compare non-biomechanical factors between manual workers with and without a history of LBP related to lifting. A secondary objective was to investigate associations between the change in pain intensity during repeated lifting (termed pain ramp) and non-biomechanical factors tested in the LBP group. Methods: Manual workers currently in lifting occupations with and without a history of lifting-related LBP were recruited (21 LBP and 20 noLBP) and took part in a repeated (100) lift task. A series of non-biomechanical factors, including psychological, work-related, lifestyle, whole health and psychophysical factors, were collected. Psychophysical factors (pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) and fatigue) were also measured at different time points. Associations between pain ramp during lifting and non-biomechanical factors were investigated with linear regression. Results: The LBP group reported worse perceived sleep quality, more musculoskeletal pain sites other than LBP and greater symptoms related to gastrointestinal complaints and pseudo-neurology compared to the group with no history of LBP. The group with LBP were also slightly more worried about the lifting task and felt more fatigued at the end of the lifting task. The feeling of fatigue during lifting was positively associated with pain ramp in the LBP group. Anxiety and gastrointestinal complaints were weakly negatively associated with pain ramp during lifting. Conclusions: The group differences of poorer perceived sleep, greater non-specific health complaints, slightly more worry about the lifting task and more perceived fatigue in the LBP group highlight the complex and multi-factorial nature of LBP related to lifting. The feeling of fatigue was positively associated with pain ramp in the LBP group, suggesting a close relationship with pain and fatigue during lifting that requires further exploration.

Keywords: back pain; lift; manual handling; non-biomechanical (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/1903/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/1903/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:3:p:1903-:d:1041961

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().