25premus009 10.3205/25premus009 urn:nbn:de:0183-25premus0092 Meeting Abstract Collie Collie Alex A

Health Systems Services & Policy, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

author German Medical Science GMS Publishing House

Düsseldorf

610 20250909 engl This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Dieser Artikel ist ein Open-Access-Artikel und steht unter den Lizenzbedingungen der Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (Namensnennung). M0625 009 12th International Scientific Conference on the Prevention of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders PREMUS 2025 Keynote SP 2 Tübingen 20250909 20250912 009 20251113The original publication listed an incorrect author. The author information has been replaced.The abstract has been moved from Session Keynote SP 3 to Session Keynote SP 2. TextIntroduction: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are one of the primary causes of disability among the general working population . About three out of five employees of EU member states suffer from WMSDs . As a result, WMSDs pose a large (economic) burden on the affected workers, employers and health care systems . Managing WMSDs is a major challenge for occupational health and safety, where occupational health and safety measures must mitigate or prevent the onset of new or aggravation of existing WMSDs. These measures address important work-related risk factors, including frequent lifting and carrying, heavy physical work, highly repetitive movements, and awkward static and dynamic postures . Exoskeletons, which are technical systems worn on the human body that have a mechanical effect on the body , have rapidly emerged for occupational applications, aiming to support functions of the musculoskeletal system during physical work .Methods: The number of publications on the topic of occupational exoskeletons has increased exponentially in recent years . Only a selection of recent literature reviews , (national) guidelines , longitudinal field studies , and laboratory studies on exoskeletons will be explicated regarding their potential for reducing physical demands and preventing WMSDs in workers.Results: Publications mainly report on evaluations of exoskeletons in various occupations regarding reductions in physical demands, including local muscle activity, joint forces and moments, and perceived feelings of discomfort, exertion or pain . Only few publications reported more direct associations with WMSD prevalence, simply because only few longitudinal field studies have been performed and published so far .Discussion: Knowledge about the effects of exoskeletons on the reduction of physical demands at the workplace are based mainly on the direct or short-term effects of wearing exoskeletons . Thus, concrete evidence that exoskeletons can actually prevent WMSDs is very limited. In addition, scientific research addresses aspects of risk assessment when working with exoskeletons, supporting and hindering factors for the introduction of exoskeletons and their practical application and acceptance by employees.Outlook: Overall, there is a great need for future longitudinal (field) studies of sufficient methodological quality that investigate the use of exoskeletons for WMSD-prevention among populations varying in age, gender, health status and occupation. The fact that there is no clear indication of the frequency or duration of exoskeleton use during the working day and that the level of support provided by the exoskeletons varies greatly indicates that fundamental questions still need to be answered. Before extensive longitudinal studies are carried out, these unsolved questions should be addressed. 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