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BACKGROUND: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) remain a challenge despite research aimed at improving their prevention and treatment. Extrinsic feedback has been suggested for the prevention and rehabilitation of WRMSDs to improve sensorimotor control, and ultimately to reduce pain and disability. However, there are few systematic reviews on the effectiveness of extrinsic feedback for WRMSDs. OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic review investigating the effect of extrinsic feedback for the prevention and rehabilitation of WRMSDs. METHODS: Five databases (CINAHL, Embase, Ergonomics Abstract, PsycInfo, PubMed) were searched. Studies of various designs assessing the effects of extrinsic feedback during work tasks on three outcomes (function, symptoms, sensorimotor control) in the context of prevention and rehabilitation of WRMSDs were included. RESULTS: Forty-nine studies were included, for a total sample of 3387 participants (including 925 injured) who performed work-related tasks in the workplace (27 studies) or in controlled environments (22 studies). The use of extrinsic feedback was shown to be effective in controlled environments for short-term prevention of functional limitations and sensorimotor alterations (very limited to moderate evidence) and for improving, in injured participants, function, symptoms and sensorimotor control (moderate evidence). In the workplace, it was shown to be effective for short-term prevention of functional limitations (limited evidence). There was conflicting evidence regarding its effect for WRMSD rehabilitation in the workplace. CONCLUSION: Extrinsic feedback is an interesting complementary tool for the prevention and rehabilitation of WRMSDs in controlled environments. More evidence is needed regarding its effect for the prevention and rehabilitation of WRMSDs in the workplace.

Contains fulltext : 167894.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access) PURPOSE: Motor imagery can improve motor function and reduce pain. This is relevant to individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) in whom motor dysfunction and neuropathic pain are prevalent. However, therapy efficacy could be dependent on motor imagery ability, and a clear understanding of how motor imagery might be facilitated is currently lacking. Thus, the aim of the present study was to assess the immediate effects of interactive virtual feedback on motor imagery performance after SCI. METHODS: Nine individuals with a traumatic SCI participated in the experiment. Motor imagery tasks consisted of forward (i.e. simpler) and backward (i.e. more complex) walking while receiving interactive versus static virtual feedback. Motor imagery performance (vividness, effort and speed), neuropathic pain intensity and feasibility (immersion, distraction, side-effects) were assessed. RESULTS: During interactive feedback trials, motor imagery vividness and speed were significantly higher and effort was significantly lower as compared static feedback trials. No change in neuropathic pain was observed. Adverse effects were minor, and immersion was reported to be good. CONCLUSIONS: This exploratory study showed that interactive virtual walking was feasible and facilitated motor imagery performance. The response to motor imagery interventions after SCI might be improved by using interactive virtual feedback.

Following a 30-minute exposure to an unusual motor strategy called “Torso Rotation” (TR), the signs and symptoms of motion sickness appear along with perceptual illusions during movement, gaze and postural instability, and a significantly reduced vestibulo-ocular response (VOR) gain. With repeated exposure to TR, motion sickness symptoms disappear and gaze instability seems reduced, but without any concomitant change in VOR gain. Is the reduction in gaze instability a perceptual illusion or a real, measurable phenomenon? Velocity gain (eye velocity/head velocity) was evaluated during voluntary head shaking in the light over the frequency range 0.3 to 3.0 Hz. A significant improvement was seen after 3 days of testing (P

Following a 30-minute exposure to an unusual motor strategy called “Torso Rotation” (TR), the signs and symptoms of motion sickness appear along with perceptual illusions during movement, gaze and postural instability, and a significantly reduced vestibulo-ocular response (VOR) gain. With repeated exposure to TR, the motion sickness disappears and gaze instability seems to be reduced. Is this apparent improvement in gaze stability associated with a reduction of the transient change in VOR gain? Motion sickness (subjective questionnaire) and VOR gain (passive step rotations in darkness) were measured before and repeatedly after TR on 7 consecutive days. Despite a complete loss of symptoms in 3 to 4 days, the transient, daily change in VOR gain remained unaffected. Furthermore, there was no increase in the use of compensatory saccades. It is concluded that adaptation to TR-induced motion sickness is not the result of a change in VOR's sensitivity to TR.

“Torso Rotation” (TR) produces an acute, reversible change in human vestibular function. Experiments were performed to determine if repeated exposure to this technique would result in long-term adaptive modifications. In one experiment, VOR gain was evaluated. Measurements were obtained before and 3 times after 30 minutes of TR, on 7 consecutive days. VOR gain dropped each day after TR, returning to normal within about 20 min. In a separate experiment with different subjects, eyes-open gaze stability was measured during voluntary head shaking between 3.0 and 0.3 Hz. The same test schedule was used. Analysis of gaze stability (limited to frequencies between 1.0 and 2.0 Hz) was complicated by an unexpected finding. Despite careful instructions, head displacement increased each day after TR, also returning to normal within about 20 min. Surprisingly, subjects were unaware of this change. Combining the 2 experiments, VOR gain and head amplitude were averaged across all 7 days, separately for the 4 daily tests. Head amplitude was plotted against VOR gain for these 4 averages. Amplitude was greater when VOR gain was reduced, with a remarkably high correlation (R2=0.996). These findings confirm that vestibular feedback plays an important role in the control of voluntary head movement. Furthermore, the data suggest that instability of the visual scene reported by subjects shaking their heads after TR resulted not only from a lower VOR gain, but also from the inadvertent use of higher head velocities.