A method to design job rotation schedules to prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders in repetitive work

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in International Journal of Production Research in 2012, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/00207543.2011.653452.Job rotation is an organisational strategy widely used in human-based production lines with the aim of preventing work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). These work environments are characterised by the presence of a high repetition of movements, which is a major risk factor associated with WMSDs. This article presents a genetic algorithm to obtain rotation schedules aimed at preventing WMSDs in such environments. To do this, it combines the effectiveness of genetic algorithms optimisation with the ability to evaluate the presence of risk by repeated movements by following the OCRA ergonomic assessment method. The proposed algorithm can design solutions in which workers will switch jobs with high repeatability of movements with other less demanding jobs that support their recovery. In addition, these solutions are able to diversify the tasks performed by workers during the day, consider their disabilities and comply with restrictions arising from the work organisation.The authors wish to thank the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia which supported this research through its Program for the Support of Research and Development 2009 and its financing through the project PAID-06-09/2902.Asensio Cuesta, S.; Diego-Mas, JA.; Cremades Oliver, L.; González-Cruz, M. (2012). A method to design job rotation schedules to prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders in repetitive work. International Journal of Production Research. 50(24):7467-7478. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207543.2011.653452S74677478502

Shared attention for action selection and action monitoring in goal-directed reaching

Dual-task studies have shown higher sensitivity for stimuli presented at the targets of upcoming actions. We examined whether attention is directed to action targets for the purpose of action selection, or if attention is directed to these locations because they are expected to provide feedback about movement outcomes. In our experiment, endpoint accuracy feedback was spatially separated from the action targets to determine whether attention would be allocated to (a) the action targets, (b) the expected source of feedback, or (c) to both locations. Participants reached towards a location indicated by an arrow while identifying a discrimination target that could appear in any one of eight possible locations. Discrimination target accuracy was used as a measure of attention allocation. Participants were unable to see their hand during reaching and were provided with a small monetary reward for each accurate movement. Discrimination target accuracy was best at action targets but was also enhanced at the spatially separated feedback locations. Separating feedback from the reaching targets did not diminish discrimination accuracy at the movement targets but did result in delayed movement initiation and reduced reaching accuracy, relative to when feedback was presented at the reaching target. The results suggest attention is required for both action planning and monitoring movement outcomes. Dividing attention between these functions negatively impacts action performance

Wealth, household heterogeneity and livelihood diversification of Fulani pastoralists in the Kachia Grazing Reserve, northern Nigeria, during a period of social transition

A mixed methods study was undertaken in the Kachia Grazing Reserve of northern Nigeria. Surveys in March, June and October 2011 included focus group discussions, key informant and in-depth household interviews, concerning livelihood practices, animal health, ownership, and productivity. In May 2011, 249 Fulani families fleeing post-election violence entered the reserve with their livestock, increasing the number of households by one third.Despite being settled within a grazing reserve, over half of households sent all their cattle away on seasonal transhumance and another third sent some away. Cattle accounted for 96% of total tropical livestock units (TLU), of which 26% were cattle kept permanently outside the reserve. While all households cited livestock as their main source of income, 90% grew crops and 55% derived income from off-farm activities. A multiple correspondence analysis showed that for each extra member of a household its TLU value increased by 2.0 [95% CI, 1.4-2.7], while for each additional marriage its TLU increased by 15.7 [95% CI, 7.1-24.3]. A strong association was also observed between small herds, small households with only one wife, alongside marked geographical wealth differences within the reserve. New immigrant families had larger household sizes (33) and livestock holdings (122 TLU) than old settlers (22 people and 67 TLU). Prior to the mass immigration, the distribution of TLU per person was unimodal: 41% of households were classified as 'poor' and 27% as 'medium', whereas post-immigration it was bi-modal, with 26% classified as 'very poor' and 28% as 'medium'.While cattle remain the principal source of Fulani income and wealth, the inhabitants of Kachia Grazing Reserve have diversified their livelihood strategies to respond to changing circumstances and stress, especially the limited availability of grazing within the reserve and political insecurity outside, resulting in continued transhumance, the maintenance of smaller livestock holdings and pushing households into poverty

Are visual stimuli sufficient to evoke motor information? Studies with hand primes

In two experiments we assessed whether seeing objects automatically activates information regarding how to manipulate them. In Experiment 1 participants categorized photographs of objects that could be manipulated either with a power or a precision grip into artefacts or natural kinds. Target-objects were preceded by primes consisting of photographs of hands in grasping postures (precision or power grip). Experiment 2 involved a preliminary motor training phase in which each visual prime was associated with the actual motor action. In both experiments, natural kinds graspable with a power grip produced the fastest responses. In Experiment 2 we also found a congruency effect between the prime and the kind of grip required by the object (precision, power). Results suggest that visual stimuli automatically activate motor information. Specific motor programs are, however. activated only if motor training is performed before the categorization task. Implications of the results for the understanding of the organization of conceptual and motor information in the brain are discussed. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Characterization and outcome of uveitis in 350 patients with spondyloarthropathies

This retrospective study analyzed 350 patients with the diagnosis of spondyloarthropathies (SPA) (207 with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), 80 with undifferentiated spondyloarthropathies (USPA) and 63 with psoriatic arthritis (PsA)) attended at a tertiary referral hospital for a minimum period of 5 years. All the patients presented complete clinical (axial and peripheral involvement, heel enthesopathies, extra-articular manifestations) and radiologic (sacroiliac, lumbar, dorsal and cervical spine) evaluation. HLA-B27 and respective alleles were searched. These data were compared with the occurrence of uveitis during the follow-up of the SPA patients. Thirty AS patients (14.5%) presented 55 episodes of acute anterior uveitis; there was statistical association between uveitis and juvenile-onset AS (P = 0.0094) and achillean (P = 0.0003) and plantar (P = 0.0067) enthesopathies; one AS patient presented a single episode of posterior uveitis, associated to tuberculosis. Seven USPA patients (8.8%) presented 13 episodes of acute anterior uveitis; it was not observed statistical association with any variable; one patient presented a single episode of posterior uveitis, associated to toxoplasmosis. Five HLA-B27 positive PsA patients (8%) presented 13 episodes of acute anterior uveitis. All the 26 positive HLA-B27 SPA patients with anterior uveitis tested for the HLA-B27 alleles were HLA-B*2705. No patient presented ophthalmologic severe sequelae of the anterior uveitis. Concluding, anterior uveitis was associated to the juvenile onset of the disease and to the enthesophatic involvement of the lower limbs in AS patients. The HLA-B*2705 allele was predominant in the anterior uveitis patients, whilst posterior uveitis was rare and associated to infectious disease.26121143114

Obesity Stigma: Important Considerations for Public Health

Stigma and discrimination toward obese persons are pervasive and pose numerous consequences for their psychological and physical health. Despite decades of science documenting weight stigma, its public health implications are widely ignored. Instead, obese persons are blamed for their weight, with common perceptions that weight stigmatization is justifiable and may motivate individuals to adopt healthier behaviors. We examine evidence to address these assumptions and discuss their public health implications. On the basis of current findings, we propose that weight stigma is not a beneficial public health tool for reducing obesity. Rather, stigmatization of obese individuals threatens health, generates health disparities, and interferes with effective obesity intervention efforts. These findings highlight weight stigma as both a social justice issue and a priority for public health