NEW: Neuromuscular assessment in the elderly worker

• Research unit: EU RFP
• Project number: 00.0196

Key words (English)

Surface electromyography; low back pain; work-related musculoskeletal disorders; mri;
Life Sciences; Medicine; Health; Social Aspects

Alternative project number (English)

EU project number: QLK6-CT-2000-00139

Research programs (English)

EU-programme: 5. Frame Research Programme - 1.1.6 The ageing population and disabilities

Short description (English)

See abstract

Further information (English)

Full name of research-institution/enterprise:
ETH Zürich
Institut für Hygiene und Arbeitsphysiologie

Partners and International Organizations (English)

Coordinator: Consorzio Ricerca/Educazione permanente, Torino (I)

Abstract (English)

Neuromuscular (NM) problems reduce working ability of aging workers, and increase cases of work loss and accidents. For this reason, elderly people throughout Europe are forced into early retirement and fail to be self-supporting.

There is a need to identify and monitor work related NM disorders in order to:
a) reduce their consequences by monitoring the most vulnerable individuals,
b) identify the determinants of NM aging related to occupational conditions and
c) evaluate methodologies for warning elderly workers when there is insufficient relaxation in vulnerable muscles.

Preliminary results show the possibility of identification of NM problems through non invasive techniques, recently developed within the SENIAM and PROCID Concerted Actions, which can provide quantitative indices of NM performance.

Substantial field tests and training initiatives are required to demonstrate that these techniques:
a) can be used outside the research labs and may have a European market in the fields of ergonomics and occupational health and
b) can be routinely used to monitor the relationship between occupational and NM system conditions in the working environment Standardization of methodology is needed.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 00.0196