June 2022
Volume 63, Issue 7
Open Access
ARVO Annual Meeting Abstract  |   June 2022
ERGONOMICS OF OPHTHALMIC SURGERY: A PILOT STUDY EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF A POSTURE TRAINER ON INTRAOPERATIVE BACK POSTURE
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • Zahra Markatia
    University of Miami Health System Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Florida, United States
    University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, United States
  • Benjamin Lin
    University of Miami Health System Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Florida, United States
  • Meghana Kalavar
    Havener Eye Center, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio, United States
  • Arjun Watane
    Yale Eye Center, Yale New Haven Health System, New Haven, Connecticut, United States
  • Hasenin Al-khersan
    University of Miami Health System Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Florida, United States
  • Jayanth Sridhar
    University of Miami Health System Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Florida, United States
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships   Zahra Markatia None; Benjamin Lin None; Meghana Kalavar None; Arjun Watane None; Hasenin Al-khersan None; Jayanth Sridhar None
  • Footnotes
    Support  None
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science June 2022, Vol.63, 3370 – A0157. doi:
  • Views
  • Share
  • Tools
    • Alerts
      ×
      This feature is available to authenticated users only.
      Sign In or Create an Account ×
    • Get Citation

      Zahra Markatia, Benjamin Lin, Meghana Kalavar, Arjun Watane, Hasenin Al-khersan, Jayanth Sridhar; ERGONOMICS OF OPHTHALMIC SURGERY: A PILOT STUDY EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF A POSTURE TRAINER ON INTRAOPERATIVE BACK POSTURE. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2022;63(7):3370 – A0157.

      Download citation file:


      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

      ×
  • Supplements
Abstract

Purpose : Ophthalmic surgeons are at an increased risk for musculoskeletal disorders resulting in chronic back and neck pain, which has been linked to disability, productivity loss, and early retirement. Prior studies have correlated these outcomes to work-related routines and equipment specific to ophthalmic exams and surgeries, which may be exacerbated by poor posture. The purpose of this study was to observe the effect that a commercially available posture trainer, Upright Go, can have on the improvement of posture of ophthalmic surgeons.

Methods : Five ophthalmologists-in-training were studied over a period of four weeks during their surgical rotations between September 2020 and June 2021. Participants underwent an “observation” period consisting of two surgical days during which their postural data was tracked via the posture training device and recorded through an associated phone application. The trainees then entered a two-week “training” period, during which the device was calibrated and programmed to vibrate anytime the user slouched past a certain degree specific to the calibration of each user. The final “testing” period consisted of another two surgical days with the vibration setting turned back off while user posture was again tracked. The percentage of time users spent upright intraoperatively pre- and post- training was evaluated.

Results : All five participants demonstrated an increase in the percentage of time spent upright after the training period. Across all participants, the total average percentage spent upright in the observation period was 64.2%, while in the testing period was 89.3%, resulting in an average improvement of 25.1% of time spent in an upright position after the completion of the training period (p<0.002). The range of improvement of time spent upright was 16.0% to 33.5%.

Conclusions : This cohort study utilized the Upright Go device to help determine the effect that its training could have on improvement of posture in ophthalmic surgeons. The results indicated a significant increase in the average proportion of time spent with upright posture compared after the training period.

This abstract was presented at the 2022 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Denver, CO, May 1-4, 2022, and virtually.

×
×

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

Sign in or purchase a subscription to access this content. ×

You must be signed into an individual account to use this feature.

×