Academic Journal
Perceived physical exertion in senior workers performing heavy manual tasks.
| Τίτλος: | Perceived physical exertion in senior workers performing heavy manual tasks. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Stjernbrandt A; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden., Öhrner P; Sports Medicine, Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden., Tornevi A; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden., Öhlin J; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden., Abtahi F; Division of Ergonomics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, 114 28 Stockholm, Sweden.; Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden., Lewis C; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden., Forsman M; Division of Ergonomics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, 114 28 Stockholm, Sweden.; Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden., Wahlström V; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden. |
| Πηγή: | Annals of work exposures and health [Ann Work Expo Health] 2026 Jun 03; Vol. 70 (5). |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Oxford University Press Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101698454 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 2398-7316 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 23987308 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Ann Work Expo Health Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: [Oxford] : Oxford University Press, [2017]- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Physical Exertion*/physiology, Heart Rate/physiology ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Male ; Female ; Aged ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Physical Fitness ; Working Conditions ; Perception |
| Περίληψη: | With an aging workforce and longer working lives, staying in physically demanding occupations is increasingly challenging, and the factors influencing perceived exertion are still poorly understood. Also, self-rated exertion may not correlate strongly with physiological measurements of physical strain at work, such as heart rate. Our study aimed to describe the physical strain experienced by senior workers in manual occupations using Borg's Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale and to explore associations between personal variables such as heart rate during work, age, physical fitness, and RPE ratings. We recruited workers aged 50 yr or older in manual occupations and collected data using questionnaires, physical examinations, field heart rate monitoring, and RPE ratings during work. Field heart rate monitoring was conducted using a chest band with a pulse sensor that transmitted data to a mobile application, and the first 6 h of recordings were used in subsequent analyses. Subjects were asked to simultaneously complete a diary at the end of each shift, rating the overall physical exertion for that day using the RPE scale, ranging from 6 (rest) to 20 (maximal physical exertion). Correlation between variables was determined using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (r). A linear mixed model was used to investigate associations between personal variables and RPE ratings. The sample consisted of 126 subjects, aged 50 to 67 yr, of whom 76 (60.3%) were females. The participants were employed as construction workers, kitchen workers, cleaners, or assistant nurses. They rated perceived physical exertion on the RPE scale once daily in one to three workdays, resulting in a total of 250 workdays. The mean (SD) RPE rating was 12.1 (2.1). When stratified by sex, the mean (SD) RPE rating was 12.1 (2.2) among females and 12.0 (1.8) among males (P = 0.669). When stratified by occupational group, the mean (SD) was 11.9 (1.9) for construction workers, 12.1 (2.0) for kitchen workers, 12.4 (1.6) for cleaners, and 11.8 (2.8) for assistant nurses (P = 0.139 to 0.815). In total, 298 heart rate (HR) recordings were obtained during work with a mean (SD) HR of 89.4 (11.4) beats/min (range 54 to 125). There was a significant bivariate correlation between the RPE ratings and mean HR for the entire study population (r = 0.14; P = 0.025) as well as in the group of construction workers (r = 0.23; P = 0.042), but not for any other occupational groups (r = 0.04 to 0.25; P = 0.096 to 0.752). In the linear mixed model, using the RPE ratings as the dependent variable, the statistically significant (P < 0.05) estimated coefficients (SE) were as follows: mean heart rate (beats/min), 0.03 (0.01); very poor sleep quality, 3.38 (0.93); and high psychological stress, 2.62 (0.71). Age, body mass index, theoretical maximum oxygen consumption, and chronic pain ratings were not significantly associated with the RPE ratings. We conclude that senior workers in manual occupations reported that their work was somewhat hard in terms of physical exertion. Our study also indicates associations between mean heart rate, sleep quality, psychological stress, and RPE ratings. (© The Author(s) 2026. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society.) |
| Competing Interests: | Conflicts of interest: M.F. and F.A. are co-founders of Wergonic AB, Stockholm, Sweden, which provided the software used for data collection in this study. The other authors declare no conflicts of interest. |
| Grant Information: | 190261 AFA Försäkring; Stiftelsen Seniorhusen till Anders Öqvists minne |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: assistant nurses; cleaners; construction workers; kitchen workers; occupational physical activity; prolonged working life |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260707 Date Completed: 20260708 Latest Revision: 20260726 |
| Update Code: | 20260726 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC13340747 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/annweh/wxag054 |
| PMID: | 42413062 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 2398-7316 |
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| DOI: | 10.1093/annweh/wxag054 |