Back Support: An essential investment

Sitting in a slouched position can over stretch the spinal ligaments and strain the spinal discs, plus cause increased stress in the back, neck, arms and legs.

But even when maintaining relatively good posture, sitting for prolonged periods puts workers at risk of back pain.

Roughly 80-90% of all work done in the office is from a seated position. Over time, poor sitting ergonomics can damage spinal structures and contribute to recurrent episodes of back pain. This risk increases in most offices, where many chairs provide less than adequate back support, particularly at work stations.

More than discomfort is involved. According to insurance reports, Cumulative Trauma Disorders caused by incorrect seating cost American businesses more than $10 billion in medical cost and lost wage benefits a year.

To prevent the discomfort and expense of poor ergonomics, each worker should have a sitting structure that:

Provides Proper Support: A person’s natural lumbar curve disappears when sitting down, so the chair must induce this curve with proper support. Support should peak at the mid-point of the lumbar curve and easily progress above and below. The support should be arched and cushioned to avoid unwanted pressure at each point of contact, including buttocks-thigh, pelvic area, legs, and forearms.

Sustains Flexible Posture: Posture is really a process, continually changing through-out the day to distribute forces through our bodies. So support areas should adjust to both "active" and "passive" sitting requirements. Adjustments should not limit or prevent movement but encourage and promote "active sitting" to help prevent cumulative trauma disorder and other maladies.

On this and following pages, Datavision offers back rests, arm rests, and chairs that can alleviate or prevent various kinds of injuries that result from bad posture, poor back support, and other aspects of poor seating ergonomics.