Effects of sitting and standing on upper extremity physical exposures in materials handling tasks

Sitting or standing work configurations modulate musculoskeletal risk. Most existing investigations of these configurations have either studied them separately or lacked focus on the upper extremity, particularly during manual materials handling (MMH) tasks. To address this gap, upper extremity loading in 20 male and 20 females were assessed in 4 MMH tasks in sitting and standing. Differences in electromyographic (EMG) activity, local joint moments and body discomfort between configurations were examined. Interactions between task and sit/stand configuration resulted in increases of up to 500% in joint moments, 94% in EMG activity and 880% in discomfort when tasks were completed while sitting (p < 0.01). Future MMH task designers should consider placing workers in standing postures when feasible to reduce upper extremity loading, but workers should not remain in either configuration for extended periods of time as the negative effects of both workspace geometries can instigate future musculoskeletal disorders.

Practitioner Summary: Sitting and standing modify occupational musculoskeletal risk. We examined how performing identical tasks while sitting or standing altered upper extremity and low back loading. In general, sitting increased muscle activity and discomfort, while standing increased local joint moments. The benefits of standing outweighed those of sitting across the range of tasks.