Effect of Expertise on Shoulder and Upper Limb Kinematics, Electromyography, and Estimated Muscle Forces During a Lifting Task.

Objective: To highlight the working strategies used by expert manual handlers compared with novice manual handlers, based on recordings of shoulder and upper limb kinematics, electromyography (EMG), and estimated muscle forces during a lifting task.

Background: Novice workers involved in assembly, manual handling, and personal assistance tasks are at a higher risk of upper limb musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). However, few studies have investigated the effect of expertise on upper limb exposure during workplace tasks.

Method: Sixteen experts in manual handling and sixteen novices were equipped with 10 electromyographic electrodes to record shoulder muscle activity during a manual handling task consisting of lifting a box (8 or 12 kg), instrumented with three six-axis force sensors, from hip to eye level. Three-dimensional trunk and upper limb kinematics, hand-to-box contact forces, and EMG were recorded. Then, joint contributions, activation levels, and muscle forces were calculated and compared between groups.

Results: Sternoclavicular-acromioclavicular joint contributions were higher in experts at the beginning of the movement, and in novices at the end, whereas the opposite was observed for the glenohumeral joint. EMG activation levels were 37% higher for novices but predicted muscle forces were higher in experts.

Conclusion: This study highlights significant differences between experts and novices in shoulder kinematics, EMG, and muscle forces; hence, providing effective work guidelines to ensure the development of a safe handling strategy is important.

Application: Shoulder kinematics, EMG, and muscle forces could be used as ergonomic tools to identify inappropriate techniques that could increase the prevalence of shoulder injuries.