Category Archives: Chair REMEDIATION

The essential requirements to avoid backache (LBP) associated with sitting. Includes backrests, tilted seats, exercise, adjustments & comfort. Also Sit/Stand , stools, child chairs & special needs.

Improving an upright chair.

 

OK.  So you use a chair and are liable to backache.  All this is very confusing and so what do you do?   I am no longer in the business of giving advice to patients and organisations.  However my interest in optimising chair design might allow me to offer some tips.

If you have an expensive, top range chair, examine the section on how some of these relate to the 2T concept and could be upgraded (so far, largely ignored) by manufacturers.  This may help you modify your own chair.

Chair remediation.

Only a forward tilted seat (FTS) or the incorporation of ‘Iliac’ support allows a chair of this type to be considered as a semi-partial solution to the adverse effects of mid-upright sitting. It is therefore essential that the support should be of the right type and directed to the right place.   Check with the relevant posts. See ⟵The 2 modes 

Chair remediation. Pelvic (Iliac) support.

Chair remediation

See Pelvic support

Chair remediation. Forward Tilted Seat.

Screen Shot 2013-10-17 at 14.25.36This is an alternative and the preferred option for the 2Tilt concept.

See Forward Tilted Seat

 

A variation of these designs is to have an antero-posterior convex seat surface, the Ischial ‘Off Load’ system.     ⟵Off-load system 

Chair remediation. Possible adjustment.

A good chair can be modified to approach the advantages of the 2T CONCEPT (see ‘A complete solution’).

  • Disable the adjustment that allows the pelvic support to be above 20 cm above the seat (?Chewing gum)    (see ‘Lumbar, pelvic/iliac support’)
  • Arrange for the adjustment control to allow easy back & forward reclination movement.  Make the chair a 2T system – either reclined or forward but not intermediate.
  • Intermediate ranges should be unstable.   They can be used as a rocking chair or as  therapeutic exercise following an acute episode of backache/lumbago.
  • In the upright mode the seat can be either tilted forward (see ‘The forward tilted seat) or arranged to take advantage of the pelvic support providing this is correctly modelled.
  • Apart from chair height and head/foot-rest, adjustments should be set accordingly and then ignored or fixed.
  • And let me know how well it works!

If your chair is more ordinary you may be lucky and have one that has reasonable iliac support or a forward tilted seat.  If you are buying, a back shop can show a number of models and advise but be aware that they are trying to sell you something and tend to feed you the manufacturers hype.

Chair remediation.  If all fails.

If your chair is really basic you may need some widgets. Possibilities are

  • A wedged cushion on the seat which helps approximate to a FTS.
  • A backrest cushion that gives iliac support.  Have a good look at the section here on iliac support that must not be higher than 20 cm above the seat and approximates as near as possible to the original Gorman model.
    • My patients loved the ‘PostureRight’ cushion which was designed by my old St Thomas’ colleague, Dr Bernard Watkins.
    • Various lumbar ‘Rolls’ are OK if correctly placed.
    • I have a cheap (£1) and cheerful wire & net model which works moderately well.

Good Luck!

There is plenty of well intentioned advice to be found on the web.  But please read this first (Sorry, hard work, I know) so that you can distinguish the  rarely well informed from misinformation  and some that is frankly laughable.

The best that I have seen is from Posturite in 4 easy diagrams.   http://www.posturite.co.uk/art-of-sitting     Obviously written by someone who is well informed.

The Hermann Miller account from being almost laughable is now good, probably as a result of being advised by Andersson, the Swedish scientist.

 

Next see  ☛ →

Familiarity bias

Familiarity bias is a factor in holding back the development of ergonomic seating.  Efforts at remediation of upright seating seem to have come to the end of the road. To address the epidemic of LBP a paradigm change is required.

‘Familiarity’, ‘Confirmatory’ and ‘Normalcy’ bias is recognised by Behavioural Psychologists as Cognitive dissonance, first described by Leon Festinger in 1957.   It  is the condition described  as the unease felt by people whose experience or information is inconsistent to other, usually already held, beliefs.  Information and situations are avoided  In an effort to reduce this discomfort and regain psychological consistency.   It can be a factor leading to serious, even catastrophic, situations.

The general familiarity bias ….

We are hardwired to believe the world we live in today and to which we are acclimatised so that we bSed lifestyleecome incapable of comprehending and believing that change is coming.  In general most users have been commanded, since nursery days, to ’Sit up straight’ or worse ’Stop tilting your chair forward’, a normal response of a child to adopt an actual correct position.   Later  ‘expert’ advice on ‘correct’ sitting upright is given with authority.  This is inspite of having been demolished by AC Mandal back in 1985 (See→Why? Mandal’s Homo sedens. ).   This mistaken view of correct seating is still accepted and widely promulgated by authorities who advise on such matters.   'Correct sit

The bias holdup

Failure to understand familiarity bias I have found  pervasive among chair designers.  Peter Bessey comments in this work (→COMFORT)  “Introducing medical-based information to designers and their education, at an early stage in their careers, would be a good way to change the status quo. The question is: how do you get that over to them in a lucid and easily digested manner? It needs to be described and presented in an easily accessible manner and not necessarily couched purely in medico-scientific terminology.”  In other words, they are really not up to speed on the scientific evidence.

Normalcy biasNormalcy bias is slightly different and can lead to serious problems for firms, however big.    It is a dangerous trap for manufacturers of ergonomic office chairs, who may be perfectly happy with the status quo, to fall into and it can blind recognition to a very real and credible threat.

People normally think that the experts are correct.  They have the top jobs and the top positions in the professions and universities, and so generally that’s true.  Until the next scientific advance arrives.  A scientist  at CERN explained “you know, so far my theory is safe, but it might – you know, ask me next week, they might have found out that I’ve been wrong my entire career”.   Good scientists are prepared to admit this but most people are overwhelmed by familiarity bias.

The Ptolemaic system of astronomy seemed to make sense of what was observed in the sky above, that the earth is the centre of the universe.  It worked for 1,500 years even becoming a tenet of Christianity, until Galileo made the mistake of inventing a telescope and Copernicus showed, scientifically, that it was wrong.  The Christian was an example of familiarity bias.  There’s now new research coming out on what’s called the double split experiment, which is a major contributor to the understanding we have of quantum mechanics, which is now maybe violating the popular interpretation of that, 70 or 80 years after it was made.  Change can be slow.  That misplaced advice on ‘correct’ sitting posture is an example.

It is not surprising that most people have difficulty in over-coming the ‘familiarity bias’ engendered.  The exception are many backache sufferers and the younger, millennial, generation who are capable of thinking ‘sideways’.

My own initial training in Biology has made me mistrust sudden jumps (large mutations) in ‘natural selection’ as these are usually deleterious. It is small incremental advances over time that result in progress.  The same can be applied to political ideology which has made me a conservative.  However when real scientific evidence advances it may be time to change.   The 2T or 4M concept, in terms of chair design is only an incremental change.  Most office chairs need only modifications.  But as a concept it seems to excite cognitive dissonance and be regarded as a ‘paradigm’ shift.

 Comment

Screen Shot 2017-03-07 at 17.59.30

From Prof. MC Boulter
The comments in your  interesting blog remind me of the theme that d’Arcy Thompson used to preach a century ago. He must have influenced you also.
Best wishes
– Michael

Screen Shot 2017-03-07 at 17.59.30     Reply from Dr HA Sanford 

d’Arcy Thompson, I think, had a mathematical approach to development and did not understand evolution by natural selection, which is my approach.  I see the 2T concept as an incremental change, along the lines of development by natural selection.   In the world of chair design the 2T concept is perceived as a ‘paradigm change’, a reclined instead of an upright posture, and I have to accept that as being so and say so.   These alternate viewpoints may make my explanation sound contradictory and excite cognitive dissonance.

Many thanks
Henry

WORK-CHAIRS, a new breed with a reclined mode.


From a wierd concept in 1998 to become disruptive in 2017?  As predicted  this is begining to emerge.  
The ‘Deskless Chair’ derived from the ergonomic importance of a reclined work position, is morphing into the ‘Workstation’. This should reduce the incidence of LBP and other health issues.  It should also increase productivity.

We see a number of ‘work-station’ type models which include a reclined work mode and so are superior to the present (2016) upright conventional  models.  The work-chairs shown here are only semi-2T compliant and appear to ignore the science and are based on engineering.    They do not invite a great uptake, inspite of extensive PR.

  Okamura is a major Japanese company and produced the Atlas, a reclined work-chair that was ahead of the field in addressing the biomechanical factors that are necessary to okamura1avoid or limit  LBP.
“Looks familiar, Henry?” was the message from John Jukes about this chair.  Sure enough it showed the semi  reclined work position that I had been advocating since 1998 on the web.  .  It has been suggested that Okamura designers had seen my web page.  I doubt this as they had failed to apply the essential requirements need to make this a more user friendly, ergonomically optimised and cheaper Screen Shot 2013-10-23 at 14.05.33model.    Their Atlas model allows some insights into where their design went wrong in relation to the 2Tilt (2T) concept.

  • It has a reasonably good reclined position.  But then things become complicated as it differs from a chair designed along 2T principles.
  • Problems occur with the further design and is unintentionally shown in the photograph, above, as the users head is not being supported.   This illustrates the point that adjustments are usually maladjusted and have confusing controls.

Screen Shot 2014-02-13 at 19.22.28

  • 1. Good.  Easily adjusted .  One of the requirements for the 2Tilt concept for users of differing height.
  • 2. Pelvic support should  be fixed at 200 mm.  (See BACKRESTS. Pelvic support v. Lumbar.→
  • 3. Also no need for this adjustment or for the depth of the seat.
  • 4. In the reclined mode the head-rest needs to be at about 6″ forward.
  • 5.  Good.  The reclined back-rest angle is 45°.   Better at 40° or less.
  • 6.  Good.  The backward extended legs give greater stability in the reclined mode.
  • Some adjustments should be avoided.  (See ADJUSTMENTS?→ )
  • The default upright mode is in the usual adverse mid-upright position.  (The upright seated posture.→ )
  •  I found the shift from the reclined mode to be awkward due to adjustments.
  • The 2T concept allows intermediate positions but these are unstable and can allow rocking exercise. (The unstable TRANSITIONAL MODE. It’s importance.↔ )
  • The seat is convex and can allow the user to sit back and take advantage of the pelvic (‘iliac’) support. In this case the headrest has to be adjusted back from it’s position that is required when reclined.   (see •3 above) (See‘Ischial Off Load system’).
  • The user can also sit on the front edge where the seat is tilting downward as with a FTS. Slipping could be a problem.
  • Fixed at a low level,  the seat allows the feet to rest on the floor in the reclined mode, as shown.  I am told that this causes problems for tall people who have tried it and an adjustable work-table may be required (no bad thing).
  • OKAMURA CONTESSADesigned and engineered to a high standard of sophistication but, again, there is a plethora of unnecessary adjustments with their controls which are so loved by contemporary designers.  Most  should be scrapped or disconnected by a user who is aware of the effect of adverse positions on spinal pathology.
  • The brochure states, ”The lumbar support gives you comfortable support.  You can adjust the lumbar support backward and forward up to 15 mm , and up and down to 60 mm.”   The upright work position shown is acceptable as the ‘lumbar’ is actually  ‘pelvic’ support provided it cannot be adjusted upwards above 20 cm.’.  Gorman  showed true ‘lumbar support‘,above 20 cm, to have the opposite effect to that desired and later confirmed by pMRI scans.
  • The reclined mode is about 50° from the floor, a little short of the ideal 45° but acceptable. The figure given above is 26° from the illustrated upright mode.  It relies on the ‘off-load’ domed seat.   I prefer the forward tilted seat (FTS) but know of no evidence that shows one system to be better than the

An object of desire?   Certainly not for me!   Even ignoring it’s shortcomings, I found it far too large and clunky.Screen Shot 2013-09-28 at 21.30.29
As predicted, a number of ‘work-chairs’ workstation type models are appearing which include a reclined work mode and so are superior to the present (2016) conventional upright models.  Appearing to ignore the science and based on engineering they do not invite a great uptake inspite of extensive PR.

The ALTWORK chair

AltmarkNow, in 2015, a chair is proposed, that has at least an upright and reclined work position.  However deficient in biomechanics (ergonomic) optimisation it may be, with reservations, it is  potentially the best work-chair in the market at that time. (http://altwork.com).     It also has a ‘stand’ facility so in this respect is approaching the 4M workstation→.    It incorporates iliac support (at least, I hope iliac and not lumbar), which is required in the upright mode but might be excessive for the reclined mode.  The reclined configuration can be deeply adverse as can be found in some dental reclined chairs.   There appears Screen Shot 2015-11-06 at 18.21.33to be intermediate  position adjustment in the transitional mode, which at best, gives no biomechanic advantage and was probably intended to add comfort → .   Misled by ” that treacherous guide  which only turns up truthfully when the ergonomics are fully correct”.   If this mode becomes a part of the unstable intermediate mode it allows a faster transition and also gives the user the choice for dynamic motion and rehabilitation.  A win-win.   Scrapping a fixed intermediate mode reduces manufacturing costs.    These faults could easily be corrected and so  with reservations, it is  potentially the best work-chair in the market.

Not having had an opportunity to see this chair, I cannot comment further on the ergonomics.   Expensive at $5,900,  it looks over engineered, awkward  and too clunky  for an ‘object of desire’.      ☛ Art, Elegance and Objects of Desire→    Did they arrive at this independently or did they see my web-page for the 2T concept? This has been in the public domain since 1998, later upgrade to the 3M (2T = 3M) & 4M   I fear it was the latter and the chance of a simpler, more ergonomically optimised and more elegant model was missed.  Also the aesthetics worried me.  I penned a hurried post on this subject.(ALTWORK & Art →)

Uptake and ‘Object of Desire’?

Appearing to ignore the science and based on engineering they do not appear to invite a great uptake inspite of extensive PR.

Screen Shot 2018-11-24 at 10.29.33Why?  Ignoring the the essential 2T requirements for an absence of adjustments and controls the models are clunky and not appealing.   The 2T simplicity reduces costs, improves function, improves ergonomics and enables a simpler and more elegant design.

For existing manufacturers this provides an opportunity and for any entering the field.   Top manufacturers are already recognising that they have come to the end of the line for ergonomics. Backache (LBP) and other spinal & muscle-skeletal conditions still persist resulting in stress and lowered productivity.   Will they grab this opportunity or be held back by Familiarity bias →?

Screen Shot 2013-12-31 at 12.36.29

Ergoquest

Screen Shot 2016-06-24 at 12.34.17A good idea in that it achieves the 2 modes but what a terrible design!   Electrically operated.  With all possible bells and whistles It represents an almost opposite view to the 2T principle and it’s 4M workstation derivative.      Price: $5995

Elecric mechanisms

The CHOTTOScreen Shot 2017-05-20 at 11.14.27

This highly innovative chair was introduced to me by it’s designer,Thomas Stroman.   He wrote to me “I am an architect by training, but having experienced back surgery, my focus has been on ergonomic seating design for human-computer interaction.”   At first glance one might be excused for thinking that it looked as if it were self mobile with caterpillar tracks.  Perhaps an exciting concept for the future. What fun to go charging around the workspace and bumping one’s colleagues!  →  www.stromandesign.com​  and  The CHOTTO→

IfM 2013Now have a look at the 2013 Cambridge student project on the 2T CONCEPT.    The Cambridge trials showed the elegance, simplicity, cost effectiveness  and greatly enhanced ergonomics of th 2T concept showing a 4M version.  This was evident to both staff and students,    The model demonstrated was a cannabalised version of the p1 prototype which had been formed from Electric tubular conduiting in the basement of the Cromwell Hospital with help from the electrician.

It excited comments  “Gee!    That’s cool.  I want it.”  so although simple it is an ‘An object of Desire’ at a student level.   Let us see what designers can do with the newer materials for the top end of the market.    Go consider!

(Yes!   That’s John Gorman glowering in the background.  He was an engineering graduate and took the opportunity to visit his ‘Alma mater’).

And a sketch for a 2T model done for me by Aaron Chetwynd in about 2000, which deliberately resembles existing chairs so as to avoid familiarity bias.   compare it’s simplicity with the next chairs.   http://www.aaronchetwynd.com→


GTRACING Gaming Office Chair


Screen Shot 2018-06-21 at 14.26.06The ‘Game Racing Chair the top end of this version ($166), with a reclined mode and an upright mode with potential pelvic support, is coming Screen Shot 2018-06-21 at 14.26.37close to the 2T design concept but lacks simplicity and optimised functionality.   The ‘Ergonomic Backrest’, 
is spoilt by being adjustable. Pillows are OK but just not good design.    Recliner Swivel Rocker Headrest sounds good.   https://www.gtomegaracing.com/gt-omega-racing-gaming-office-chair-seats .

Aircraft seating

Screen Shot 2019-03-15 at 16.42.26This seems to be always ahead of Office seating.   Benjamin Hubert of LAYER recently collaborated with Airbus to redesign economy class airline seating.   From the photographs this is hardly ergonomically impressive but the fabric claims interesting ‘all singing, all dancing properties’.   These include a knit seat cover with zones of various density that offer customized levels of support to the body and automatically adjust,  based on weight and movement. This is made possible by passing current through the conductive yarn to vary the seat tension.  The accompanying Move App, which when connected with the smart textiles gives users control over factors –like seat tension, temperature, pressure and movement. Presets include “massage”, “mealtime”, or “sleep”.     This may have ‘legs’, as a means to approach the 2T design concept, by reducing the overall complexity of seat construction, probably lowering cost of both seat and its tooling and by restraining overall weight, enabling a potential tilt mechanism to be less stressed and easier to control.  (Peter Bessey suggests)

How do concepts evolve?

In 1903 Ford’s ‘Horseless Carriage’ had morphed into the Model T, capable of 20 horsepower In 1908.  This, at least, solved the “great horse manure crisis of 1894” when it was suggested that London’s streets would be clogged in 9 feet of horse manure in 50 years. It’s descendants are, in turn, being disrupted by ‘the driverless car’.   Disruptive technologies have to prove themselves Screen Shot 2018-07-08 at 15.04.13first. They do so by working on the same infrastructure as the incumbent leaders. Cars had to run on the same streets as horses. Dial-up internet connections in the late 1990s used the copper in the phone networks.     So, work-stations have to use existing office spaces before becoming universal. (Dan DenningPublisher, Southbank Investment Research ).

Peter Bessey wrote (30/6/2016) “It has taken time for the market to build, but there is definitely a movement toward other postures in the workplace. While some of that has derived from posture investigation and potential for beneficial effects on the user, other advances have emerged as a response to changing technology, new materials and a non-paper work method, as seen from the 60’s onward.   I suspect that a NASA effect is involved in some of this too. Numerous resources have been directed into space travel in recent decades and, for human travellers, that has mostly incorporated a reclined support system to encourage stress-reduction during high-load take-off and landing. So there has been a real effort to ensure that anthropomorphic needs are addressed properly when working from that position, to ensure equipment control systems can be operated successfully and without long-term harm.   There have been a number of attempts to create pod-like structures around reclined positions, to create controlled environments for audio enjoyment, meditation and relaxation. Perhaps those too, have influenced the current trend? But the main factor may well just simply be the instant communication and data access that today’s world now has available for sharing ideas.  Apart from that, it is likely that this trend has derived from the typical and gradual process in which increased knowledge, enlarged awareness and advance in technology brings. Stale markets, where things have remained much the same for decades and highly competitive markets where a cycle of fashion and small detail differences are all the consumer sees on offer, can drive the introduction of disruptive design ideas and encourage new entrants to challenge the existing status quo. Perhaps that is what we are beginning to see    Best regards  Peter”

For further reading, see ☛

REMEDIATION


  Chair remediation.   An OVERVIEW

Screen Shot 2018-11-24 at 17.35.00Having   identified  the main adverse effects on the spine of upright sitting, it becomes possible to consider the options available for chair remediation.    This depends on whether the design is for an upright chair, which is inevitably partial, or a full optimisation which is a ‘paradigm shift’ (The 2T).

The adverse effects of upright sitting.

Screen Shot 2016-03-13 at 15.11.47

Screen Shot 2018-11-28 at 15.48.19This has already been covered in Biomechanics but is recapitulated :-

  • The intradiscal pressure (IDP) from spinal axial loading in the upright state. The conventional upright sitting posture increases disc compression.
  • Retroversion (backward tilt or to an an anatomist a ‘forward tilt’)  of the pelvis results in lumbar spinal flexion which reduces or reverses the protective disc wedge angle.
  • Stretching of the posterior elements (ligaments joint capsules) allowing instability of the motion segment and can lead to CTD.
  • AugmentedA reduced hip angle.  With a seat parallel to the floor the hip angle at only 90° the hip extensor muscles (hamstrings & glutei) also rotate the pelvis so as to flatten the lumbar lordosis.
  • The lower lumbar intervertebral joints (L5/S1, L4/5 & less, L3/4), on the mobile side of the lumbo-sacral junction, being the most at risk
  • Localised pressure in the area of the ischial tuberosities (IT)
  • Immobility.

 Screen Shot 2018-12-04 at 18.09.05Chair remediation.   Requirements for any chair design or a full optimisation.

Derived from these findings are the ergonomic requirements to help chair remediation of  the adverse effect of the Upright seated mode.  Essentially these are two.

Solutions:-

1. Partial solutions

Partial solutions are for mid-upright sitting in chairs that have been well designed and engineered.

2 remediations

Derived from these findings are the ergonomic requirements to help remediate the adverse effect of the Upright seated mode. Essentially these are two.

   Upright chair remediation.

  1. Screen Shot 2018-11-24 at 10.29.33 ☛forward tilted seat→,
  2.  ☛Pelvic support→,
  3.  The Ischial off-load system.   A third, now often used for Upright seated mode remediation in a number of chairs is derived from a combination of the 2 above.    The seat-pan is convex so that the front half acts as a forward tilted seat and the back half allows the user to sink back into the back support.   Hopefully this is correct iliac support.

It must be emphasised that these are commonly misapplied  due to failure to understand the underlying scientific basis.   Some insight can be gleaned from ☛Various chairs. How do they measure up?  At best they are not a solution to fully reduce  the incidence of backache (LBP).

Screen Shot 2018-12-04 at 18.26.57A supine reclined work chair is no longer unknown (Okamura, Altwork) and remediates all the adverse effects of the upright sitting mode.   The poor uptake of reclined models seem due to failusre to appreciate the essential requirements for this mode to become fully functional.   This must include the  full chair remediation  incorporated in the 2T (3M, 4M) concept.

The FULL solution …

  • The 2TILT (2T, 3M) CONCEPT.  
    Screen Shot 2018-12-03 at 11.49.53
    An optimal system that effectively fully remediates all the adverse effects that have been enumerated.  Any chair can be compared to it for establishing it’s ergonomic efficiency.   An essential tool for chair design.       See ☛ 2T CONCEPT a full solution→ For the 2T full remediation further requirements are necessary.

ALTERNATIVE SYSTEMS

  1. Sit/Stand.  The  importance of keeping staff exercised is increasingly recognised.   For more detail See ☛Sit/Stand→     The negative consequences of constrained sitting has been described by a number of authorities (Adams and Hutton, 1983Duncan and Ferguson, 1974Edlund  There are advantages in keeping staff moving around and inter-reacting in certain types of office.
    Note that a sit/stand system can always incorporated into a 3M work chair station→ 
  2. Office in a pool.  Hardly suitable for the UK!

 

3M OFFICE WORK-STATION

Screen Shot 2018-12-03 at 17.20.27An  office work-station is easily derived from the 2Tilt chair concept and now renamed the ‘TriModal’  (3M)  concept.  

Screen Shot 2015-12-05 at 16.28.55So called as it has 3 modes.

Jukes on designWhen a sit/stand component is incorporated it becomes a 4M concept.   See☛workstations→

 

BACK-RESTS. Pelvic support v. Lumbar.

 Back-rests.  A partial solution only if correct.

Correct back-rests with pelvic support prevents the usual backward tilt of the pelvis which flattens the protective lumbar lordosis.   The emphasis is on ‘correct’.     Gorman JD, whose analysis is included, pointed out the importance of the positioning of the back-support and distinguished –    

  • SS adverse upright sittingPelvic (iliac) back-rests.  Of fundamental importance for any chair design intended for prolonged use.  Support is directed at the level of the pelvic Iliac crest, approximately 20 cm above the seat.
  • Lumbar back-rests.   Support is directed to the lumber spine above the iliac crest.  it fails to prevent backward pelvic tilting and can be seriously adverse.

Pelvic tilting.  A result of upright sitting

Effect of sitting

These adverse effects need to be addressed for effective REMEDIATION →

Screen Shot 2013-10-16 at 20.36.32The backward rotation of the pelvis when sitting results from the weight of the upper body acting down on it via the spine and has already been described in the post (Biomechanics/Effects on sitting
posture
) and it’s effect of reducing the IVD wedge angle (Angles & lordosis).  AC Mandal described this change and how a misconceived lumbar backrest, that is intended to reproduce the lordotic curve which pertains while standing, was arrived at in the 1920’s.  It provided the theoretical basis for the adverse traditional ‘correct’ sitting posture. ☛ Why? Mandal’s homo sedans→ . It was reinforced when Cyriax126 pointed out the importance of lordosis in avoiding retropulsion of the disc contents with his adage “Preserve the lumbar curve”.

Position of the back support

This is important.  The effectiveness of any upright chair in reducing LBP depends on the positioning of the back-rests.   The variation is surprisingly small.

Screen Shot 2016-06-02 at 14.32.12

Not all authorities agree on the terminology. Above is my own view. HAS.     

Relevance to the 2T (3, 4M) concept.  Back-rests incorporating Iliac support can be a component of a 2T chair both as a remedial component for the upright mode and also to prevent a backward tilt in the reclined mode.

Height adjustment?

Most work chairs have adjustment mechanisms that puts the support above 20 cm.  This is to accomodate the tall user.  This mistaken concept should be resisted and adjustments avoided.  If adjusted higher there is a potential to result in adverse effects for average users.. A tall person might lose some mechanical advantage but would not incur any harm. A chair designed for a large person can have the iliac support at a higher level (max 168 mm,) that would be adverse for a small person.

Screen Shot 2014-02-05 at 11.59.11The height of the posterior superior iliac spine above a seat (ignoring interposed soft tissues] Is between 146 – 168 mm.   (Diag. by Wicketts D, 2014, after Reynolds)

 

 

 

Pelvic and Iliac support.  

Iliac variety Pelvic support was developed by John Gorman an engineer and chiropractor (Gorman’s41) was in contradistinction to existing ‘lumbar support’,  Precise support, shaped to the curve of the iliac crest is  applied to the posterior iliac spine and iliac crest of the pelvis.   A slight forward nudge at this point is mechanically efficient in extending the two lowest joints and prevents the pelvis rotating backwards.This brings the iliac support round to encircle the entire Iliac crest, ie. half way round the lower torso.  This is certainly comfortable and gives maximum mechanical effectiveness.  However chair designers don’t like it as it looks “too like a hospital chair for the disabled”.Screen Shot 2013-09-27 at 17.45.44

 

 Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 14.29.22A compromise is to direct the support to the posterior superior iliac spine (the back of the iliac crest).  This should be adequate to prevent the pelvis from tilting backwards but may be less comfortable.

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 18.33.37Following the publication of Gorman’s ‘Pelvic Posture’ principle a number of other back-rests have been developed also called ‘pelvic support’.    Subsequent designers seem to have missed this point and allow pressure to be directed  to the L5 & S1 spinous processes in  the mid-line  which gives uncomfortable point pressure.  More correctly, this is ‘sacral support’.   In retrospect it was perhaps unfortunate that Gorman named this concept ‘Pelvic Support’ when more precisely it is Iliac support.    Pelvic support, of some sort, has increasingly become accepted into mainstream chair design. Even cheaper chairs tend to direct the support to the level of the iliac crests although Gorman’s work may not have been recognised and not fully implemented.

 Gorman’s analysis.  He wrote:-

“The theory of lumbar support is a simple mechanical error; the result of orthopaedic surgeons not having engineering knowledge and seat and chair engineers, no anatomical knowledge.


When we sit, the primary effect is the backward rolling of the pelvis, because all the leg muscles connect to the pelvis so, when the thigh goes from vertical to horizontal (or beyond) in sitting, the pelvis tends to roll back too. (Tight clothing accentuates this).  The weight of the upper body transfers down the spine, on to the back of the pelvis – rolling it backwards.  These two effects cannot be resisted by supporting the spine directly, and the result is maximum bending force where the spine connects to the pelvis. This is exactly what lumbar support causes.”        (John Gorman).

His mechanical analysis, showed that, in the sitting position, a support behind the lumbar joints results in flexion of the L5/S1 joint (X). This is the joint at which 80% of disc pathology occurs and flexion is precisely the position that has to be avoided, particularly if the wedge angle can fall below 0° (ie. vertebral joint surfaces parallel), which is usual in Western populations.   Schorberth132 showed that the pelvis rotates by 40° on changing from the standing to sitting mode with lordosis loss at the vulnerable L4/5 & L5/S1 joints.

P v. L Gorman

The Gorman paradox. Support of the lumbar spine at the levels above the pelvis resulting in adverse flexion at the lowest 2 joints seems to be at variance with common experience and is difficult to understand.   The spine is generally conceived as a semi rigid column of chunky bones, equivalent to a  vertical flexible rod, so lumbar support seems reasonable.      However, the anatomical reality is that the lower end of the flexible rod is firmly embedded in a large solid chunk of material, the pelvis.  In this case the force directed at the rod will result in lordosis at its point of application but this changes to a position of flexion at the lowest one or two joints which are fixed to the relatively solid pelvis.

 Gorman’s calculations were unexpectedly and serendipitously confirmed by a study in Sweden, by Andersson (et al129 ) to show the effect of spinal inclination on the lumbar joints in the upright sitting position.   A number of angles (see below) were measured radiographically while standing, and sitting with  various angles of backrest and various depths of lumbar supports at different levels.    Gorman took Andersson’s raw data and re-expressed them as follows:-

Difference, in degrees, of joint flexion/extension at various spinal levels and thickness of lumbar support (-2, 0, +2, +4 cms)

FTS2

 

Gorman’s own account can be seen→

  • Note that at +2  cm of lumbar support, in column 3, in spite of 3.5° of extension at L1, the important L5/S1 joint is pushed into 4.9° of flexion!
  • Also, in row 2, that the +2 cm of lumbar support results in flexion of the L5/S1 joint even when compared to sitting with no support, described by Lueuder as “the worst possible position”.  The L5/S1 joint is only moved into extension when the lumbar support is 4 cm thick.  This amount is uncomfortable.
  •   These points were not commented on by the authors but Gorman asserts that “these figures means that lumbar support is having exactly the opposite effect to that intended.” 
  • More recently this view has been further confirmed by pMRI studies (Smith FE 2006137).
  • pMRI sagittal lumbar scan with lumbar (not pelvic) support

Screen Shot 2013-09-27 at 17.28.28

The upper lumbar joints are in extension and the disc contents are in a central position.

The more relevant lower two discs have reduced wedge angles and there is retropulsion of disc contents at L5/S1 which appear to be about to extrude.

Screen Shot 2013-09-25 at 22.31.53This effect deserves further study.

 

 

 

Gorman wrote:- “If the backrest is flat or only gently curved -seen from above- then it will only contact the sacrum (at 10cm or so above hard surface) or the posterior iliac spines.This could still be pelvic support but much less effective because it is only half the height and therefore half the leverage or mechanical advantage. The 20 cm level at the back will indeed be the lumbar spine.”13         Gorman also wrote (13/3/20013). “One of the problems of making a backrest effective in an upright chair -and this applied to our pelvic support chairs too- is that most of the users don’t sit properly against the backrest. Just look around any office.   The only people sitting up straight with full contact with the backrest are those that already have a back problem !   Everyone else is more or less slumping. “

For Gorman’s view on origins of LBP→

 JD Gorman explains the difference in stresses of posterior elements which occur in Lumbar and Pelvic support.

Henry      See attached pic from my document at Naturaljointmobility. 

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 20.03.44

A. If this car seat incorporated Iliac support, then the compressive force in the L5/S disk would be a bit less than the 40kg weight of the whole of the upper body.

B. If a lumbar support seat, as shown, then the only thing that can resist the occurring backward rolling of the pelvis is a tension in the red ‘posterior elements’ thing, the supraspinous ligament, the fascia or muscles. Regardless of the contribution of each of these structures in resisting the backward rolling, their total tension must result in additional compression in the disc.  Very roughly, by simple mechanics, in this drawing, the compression will be an additional  80 kg or so , tripling the compressive force in the spine to 120kg (very rough calculation!!)

Incidentally this shows the agreement between us of preserving lumbar lordosis and against the standard office chair or car seat.   You see the compression in the disc as the problem and I see the tension in the “red” ligaments as the problem because it stretches them outside their natural range.    Regards,   John

Reply (From HAS)

John.      An interesting analysis.  I think we agree that the common pathway to IDD is increased intra-discal pressure and associated with reduction of the disc wedge angle.  Your analysis shows that lumbar support may increase the axial pressure in addition to allowing backward tilting of the pelvis and reduction of the wedge angle.   In popular parlance, a ‘double-whammy’.  This may account for the discrepancies in the findings of intra-discal pressure research where the precise support is not specified ( a vague photograph is inadequate).

In addition to the above you are also postulating malfunction due to ligament stretching and a muscle ‘over centred’ position.   I mention this in the post ‘Anatomy’/ligaments where CTD is mentioned.  Solomonov seems to be the expert here.  Yours,  Henry

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 18.33.37Failure to understand the principles underlying Gorman’s “Pelvic Posture Principle” can easily lead to a muddle.   An example is that of Hermann Miller.

HM2The late John Jukes, who was investigating the incidence level of musculo-skeletal symptoms in offices, told me that he suggested to that ‘pelvic support’ should be incorporated in their models but said this was ignored.  Perhaps annoyed by his rebuff by the firm, Jukes later wrote “Henry.  A large percentage of staff throw out the lumbar support bar because it is too hard and uncomfortable. They do have a pelvic support now. However it has the same problem in that the support is concentrated at the base of the spine and not the iliac crest.”  He later wrote “It now incorporates pelvic support and so can be regarded, with reservations, as offering a semi-partial solution to the problem of LBP”.

Back-rests now …

The Gorman design,  suggested to them by John Jukes in the first place might have saved HM and their clients, decades  of trouble.    Gorman’s “Pelvic Posture Principle” seems now to have been largely accepted by mainstream designers.   The underlying principles are hardly fully understood.   Adjustments allow the rest to be raised to become lumbar support.    ‘Familiarity bias‘  rears it’s ugly head preventing the substitution of anatomical design for ‘adjustments’.   Chairs are still being designed with lumbar support and I sat in one recently when dining with young relations.  The chairs, of transparent plastic, looked cool.   The only trouble was that they were excruciatingly uncomfortable because the back-rest was lumbar and not pelvic.

MandalA recent (14/1/2019) advertisement & and advice.

Next, see the second remediation ☛  The FORWARD TILTED SEAT (FTS).

Or skip to 2T CONCEPT a full solution

ISCHIAL OFF LOAD system

A Partial solution.

The Ischial Off Load system consists of a convex chair seat.  This combines both a FTS and allows, at the back half, pelvic support.

Upright sitting mode commentDerived from https://www.chairoffice.co.uk/blog/the-ergonomics-of-a-chair-explained/

This illustration for an advertisment (but not my comments) seems to show an Ischial Off Load system.   The front half of the seat is tilted forward approximating to a FTS so that the upper body static load ‘Off Loads’ pressure from ischial tuberosities to the thighs when sitting forward  and, depending on the chair height, increases the hip angle.   The back half (BPS) tilts back by 18° and allows the torso to sink back against the ‘Lumbar’ support (One hopes that this is pelvic not lumbar support) and so some of the static load transfers from the ischium to the backrest.   The ischial tuberosities get wedged against the backward sloping part of the seat surface which prevents the normal tendency to slide forwards on the seat when the lumbar or pelvic support pushes forwards enough to be effective. This means that the support can be more effective and if low enough can be pelvic support even though it doesn’t come round the sides of the iliac crest as in the original Gorman model which was more comfortable, effective and had no need for adjustment.  This advantage is slight compared to that of a reclined mode.

In the Makhsous study (135),  kinematic, force, EMG, and X-Ray data were collected at the lower lumbar spine and showed some reduction of intra-discal load compared to unsupported or sitting with a straight backrest.  An ‘Off Load’ system seems to be described although the term is not used.   In the design used, adjustments could be made in the back and ischial supports  A plethora of adjustments is confusing and can be adverse, in a work chair, if adjusted wrongly.  Ideally they should be avoided.

‘Off Load’ is perhaps an unfortunate term.   Off loading from the ischial tuberosities (ITs) is subsidiaryScreen Shot 2018-12-20 at 17.45.06
to the  extension of the hips due to the FTS effect and and pelvic support achieved by the back half of the seat.   I have noticed that users tend to take advantage of the FTS component and perch on the front edge.  It is still possible for the user to sit in the middle of the seat and so adopt the upright ‘worst possible position’.

Gorman, himself, has posted a comment, in his usual vigorous style, related to the backward component.

reply

From JD Gorman     24 August 2013 16:34
Re: ‘Off Loading’.
Reading through the Makhsous document, off loading seems to mean reducing the force supporting the body at the ischial tuberosities which must then be replaced by a force to take the weight on the thighs via the hip joint. Why this should be promoted as advantageous, I cant think. The ischial tuberosities have been the support point in sitting for 50 million years in the monkeys, the apes and all our bipedal ancestors.

I think the authors have misunderstood the mechanics of sitting with the rear part of the seat sloped backwards. On trying a similar chair, the curiously named DROOP SNOOT,  I found that the ischial tuberosities got wedged against the backward sloping part of the seat surface which stops the normal tendency to slide forwards on the seat when the lumbar or pelvic support pushes forwards.    This means that the lumbar support can be very effective and if low enough can be pelvic support even though it doesn’t come round the sides of the iliac crest (as in my original concept).

Those DROOP SNOOT chairs certainly worked for back sufferers in locating the pelvis but the forces were high which made them uncomfortable for prolonged sitting.   They sold in all the back shops about 20 years ago and I visited the manufacturers in High Wycombe.

As you say seats like the HM Aaron chair do the same to some extent but not as much as the solid seat of the droop snoot. If it fixes the pelvis and therefore eliminates the backward rolling then it will eliminate the bending force in the spine which normally stops the backward rolling which occurs with normal lumbar support. This would reduce intra-discal pressure because part of the pressure is the direct axial weight. The other part is due to the tension in ligaments, such as  the supraspinous. ie bending force in the spine will result in compression just as it does in lifting.     John

 

JD Gorman explains the difference in stresses of posterior elements which occur in Lumbar and Pelvic support.

Henry      See attached pic from my document at http://www.naturaljointmobility.info/Prosthetic%20supraspinous%20Ligament.htm

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 20.03.44

A. If this car seat incorporated Iliac support, then the compressive force in the L5/S disk would be a bit less than the 40kg weight of the whole of the upper body.

B. If a lumbar support seat, as shown, then the only thing that can resist the occurring backward rolling of the pelvis is a tension in the red ‘posterior elements’ thing, the supraspinous ligament, the fascia or muscles. Regardless of the contribution of each of these structures in resisting the backward rolling, their total tension must result in additional compression in the disc.                  Very roughly, by simple mechanics, in this drawing, the compression will be an additional  80 kg or so , tripling the compressive force in the spine to 120kg (very rough calculation!!)

Incidentally this shows the agreement between us of preserving lumbar lordosis and against the standard office chair or car seat.   You see the compression in the disc as the problem and I see the tension in the “red” ligaments as the problem because it stretches them outside their natural range.    Regards,   John

Reply (From HAS)

John.      An interesting analysis.  I think we agree that the common pathway to IDD is increased intra-discal pressure and associated with reduction of the disc wedge angle due to flexion of the lower lumbar joints.  Your analysis shows that lumbar support may increase the axial pressure in addition to allowing backward tilting of the pelvis and reduction of the wedge angle.   In popular parlance, a ‘double-whammy’.  This may account for the discrepancies in the findings of intra-discal pressure research where the precise support is not specified ( a vague photograph is inadequate).

In addition to the above you are also postulating malfunction due to ligament stretching and a muscle ‘over centred’ position.   I mention this in the post ‘Anatomy’/ligaments where CTD is mentioned.  Solomonov18 seems to be the expert here.  Yours,  Henry

Next ☛  Sit Stand & stools

The 2T CONCEPT

OVERVIEW.   The 2 TILT (or 3M) chair CONCEPT.

The concepts derived from the scientific evidence.  see ☛Biomechanics→ .   It  is the optimised default  against which the ergonomics of any chair can be assessed.    An essential standard for chair designers.

Screen Shot 2018-07-08 at 19.44.36

The identified  adverse bio-mechanical factors :-

  •  Listed here are those requiring remediation to ensure a safe sitting position
  • The intradiscal pressure (IDP) from spinal axial loading in the upright state.  ☛Loading→ Raised IDP has increasing effect with degeneration which occurs in most people and may start surprisingly early.  ☛Inter Vertebral Disc (IVD)→
  • Additional mechanical factors, such as flexion and rotation are required for  disc prolapse to result.
  • A kyphotic, flexed lumbar spinal position leading to stretching of the posterior elements and ☛CDT→.
  • Reduction of the IV Disc wedge angle  (☛Sato 1999).
  • The retroversion (backward tilt or to an an anatomist a ‘forward tilt’)  of the pelvis, which occurs on sitting upright, reduces or reverses the protective disc wedge angle.
  • A hip angle of 90° which occurs with a seat parallel to the floor allowing the hip extensor muscles (hamstring & glutei) to rotate the pelvis so as to flatten the lumbar lordosis. Ideal angle of hip extension is 130° shown by pMRI (☛Smith 2006).
  • A prolonged constrained posture.
  • Sleeplessness. (For an account see ☛Metrojet→ )

Screen Shot 2016-03-13 at 15.11.47

These are described further under ☛ Remediation→.

Only a reclined posture, basic to the 2Tilt chair concept, can reduce all these and this must be the only logical system for a prolonged working position.   

Two Tilt, 2T,  So called as there are only 2 stable modes, each at either end of range. The unstable transition is also a mode with actual benefits and allows the concept to be renamed Tri-Modal concept (3M).  The addition of a standing mode creates a Quadri-Mode (4M) chair station with a Sit/Stand capability.   The 2T concept, in it’s early days being a paradigm shift, engendered ‘familiarity bias’ for designers.   This is now decreasing  ☛Uptake & implications→



Essential 
REQUIREMENTS
for the 2Tilt concept.  Screen Shot 2016-03-18 at 18.08.46        

Principle 1

Reclined mode. The optimum for prolonged work

Prolonged sitting tasks should be performed in the reclined position with the backrest at 40-45° Screen Shot 2016-03-16 at 10.44.00from the horizontal using a normal desk. This can be reduced with a desk-less version.   Support is given to the whole length of the body, from head to feet.  pMRI studies  have confirmed that the risk of posterior  disc displacement is avoided by supine or semi-supine positions.(Smith,2006).

In the reclined mode  some requirements are necessary to ensure optimal support and must include the following.

  • Requirement 1 Support is given to the entire length of the body, from head to feet with  a  back support correctly configured to spinal morphology, with iliac support at correct level and shape.
  • Requirement 2. Even with the reduced axial loading the lumbar lordosis should be maintained and this is best effected by some pelvic (not lumbar) support. This should only be sufficient to avoid lumbar flattening, and should avoid excessive lordosis.
  • Requirement 3. Some extra curve (kyphosis) of the thoracic spine, over that which pertains on standing, is allowed because it is fully supported and is a stable area and not liable to mechanical breakdown. It extends, with the upper lumbar joints, over 14 segments and the extra flexion at any single joint is minimal.
  • Requirement 4. A correctly placed head/neck-rest is required so that the occupant has no need to move the neck to establish the task-related visual field.
  • Requirement 5. It is necessary to have support for the legs and feet.  Compression of the calf muscles should be avoided.   A spring exercise system is an advantage.  The floor is allowed as a foot-rest  if the knees can remain extended.
  • Requirement 6.  Variability at head and feet only.   These are the most variable parts of the human body, in the reclined mode.       Adjustments avoided elsewhere.      ☛Adjustments→.
  • A reclined 40-45° position is advised for a stand-alone 2T chair.   Greater angle, nearer fully supine, is possible with a deskless work station  ☛4M OFFICE WORK-STATION→. 
  • As a concept existing design details are not included.   Derived from the concept, designers are free to develop their own.  ☛ For designers→
  •  See ☛The 2T reclined mode→

Principle 2. (Hence the 2T concept)

A 2Tilt  Upright Mode  is subsidiary but  required for certain short activities and quitting the chair and is the default mode when the chair is unoccupied.  ☛2T Upright modes→   ☞Mandal

• Requirement 7. Maintaining the wedge angle of the lower two lumbar joints, in the upright mode, can be achieved by a ☛forward tilted seat (FTS) or by correct use of ☛ iliac support. The latter cause additional design problems in this case and so is not recommended for an original design but may be convenient for modification of an existing model.

Principle 3.  An unstable transitional mode.

• Requirement 8.    Mid ranges should be unstable and easily negotiated.  It is necessary to be able Screen Shot 2018-07-04 at 14.40.57to switch rapidly and easily from a reclined to the upright mode.

  •  This is mainly for convenience but the switch also results in a change of pressure on the disc and this has the added advantage of providing a pumping action which aids disc nutrition.
  •  No adjustment is allowed to maintain an intermediate position
  • These reproduce the conventional adverse sitting posture and should be avoided. (☛Mandal→)
  • Their instability  can be used for short periods as a form of exercise ( ☛ dynamic seating→),
  • Particularly for rehabilitation of the Multifidus (☛ muscles→) following an internal derangement at the low lumbar joints.      For a fuller account. see ☛Unstable intermediate mode →

Principle 4

Requirement  9. Adjustments should be avoided, as far as possible

except for the head and feet and possibly height of seat.  As variation in size of the skeleton of a human torso is not great except for the soft tissues and to the long (limb) bones there is no need for variability to be built into the chair parts that support the torso. With most chairs these are adjusted into the wrong position! This flies in the face of chair designers who are searching for the Holy Grail of infinite adjustability. If a manufacturer prefer a plethora of adjustments, although increasing costs and degrading the green footprint, this does not entirely negate the 2T principles. Although as far as possible, adjustments should be avoided, the footrest position must adjust to leg-length.  (See ☛ Adjustments→)

Principle 5

(Requirement 10) The 4M deskless work station with standing mode.

A stand ( ☛Sit/Stand→) facility can be incorporated in the desk-less station version.    ☛4M office work station→

 

Next ☛  The 2Tilt RECLINED MODE→

 

 

UPRIGHT MODE & TRANSITION for the 2Tilt concept

A 2Tilt concept Upright Mode is subsidiary but essential to allow the reclined mode to be fully and easily used in an office or work environment.   An unstable Transition Mode has health benefits and it’s importance is described.

Upright mode2T upright mode

The 2T upright mode is subsidiary but  required for certain short activities and quitting the chair and is the default mode when the chair is unoccupied.

The upright mode is for short tasks only and the configuration is unimportant providing that the intermediate, transitional range is unstable.

  1.  Maintaining the wedge angle of the lower two lumbar joints, in the upright mode, can be achieved by a ☛forward tilted seat (FTS)
  2. or by correct use of ☛ iliac support. The latter cause additional design problems in this case and so is not recommended for an original design but may be convenient for modification of an existing model.
  3. also see ☛the Ischial off load system→.

  An unstable transitional mode.

Easy transition (MSAS)

2T Principle 3.Requirement 8.  Mid ranges should be unstable and easily negotiated.  It is necessary to be able Screen Shot 2015-10-07 at 13.43.22to switch rapidly and easily from a reclined to the upright mode2T mid range.
  •  This is mainly for convenience but the switch also results in a change of pressure on the disc and this has the added advantage of providing a pumping action which aids disc nutrition.
  • Their instability  can be used for short periods as a form of exercise ( ☛dynamic seating→)
  • This is not just a quick transition from the reclined to the upright modes (2T) but the instability provides physiological benefits and is itself a mode.  The concept is renamed the Tr-Modal (3M).  2T = 3M.Screen Shot 2018-12-21 at 17.46.44

2Tilt Principle 3  Requirement 9. No adjustment is allowed to maintain an intermediate position. The adverse intermediate upright position should be unstable.  This allows an easy and rapid transition from one mode to the other and no adjustment is allowed to maintain an intermediate position.

Easy control free transition Camb

This may seem counter-intuitive.  Why shouldn’t the user be able to sit easily in any position that seems comfortable?   It worries chair designers dreadfully although they may not be bothered by the ‘dynamic seating’ concept..

Why?SS adverse upright sitting

  •  It is, equivalent to the mid upright position of most office chairs, carrying an ergonomic penalty.    A user, used to a mid-upright chair,  could use an adjustment to maintain this position for long periods which would add an unnecessary adverse effect to an otherwise optimal system.
  • The intermediate positions being unstable require muscular effort to be sustained.   On moving back a few degrees from the stable forward upright mode the occupant enters this upright unstable position which provides proprioceptive feedback and frequent small amplitude pressure changes. Sp movement
  • Spinal movement & change of position are important for a number of reasons including IV disc nutrition. ☛  Movement & exercise→
  • Particularly for rehabilitation of the Multifidus (☛ muscles→) following an internal derangement at the low lumbar joints.
  • A user has a choice and may find a short episode of this low amplitude exercise pleasant.  Longer periods are liable to be tiring.
  • There is also an added advantage  in providing therapeutic exercise following an acute LBP episode with it’s resultant muscle and reflex atrophy. (See ☛Anatomy/muscles).
  • Addition of a sit/stand mode in the 3M version allows the user to walk around.
  • ‘Dynamic Seating’.Recently there has been interest in continuous small amplitude movement for upright chairs, the chair re-aligning with the users centre of gravity.  ☛  Movement & exercise→
  • 2T exercise and movement systems   ☛  Movement & exercise→
  • Sit/Stand. Bio-mechanically superior to the use of existing upright chairs and can be an adjunct to the 2T system which then becomes a ☛ 4M work-station→ concept (and a ‘full’ solution).☛ Sit/Stand→

A specific illustration

AltmarkThe ALTMARK Chair has both a reclined and upright mode which makes it interesting and ahead of the market.   The webpage shows a fixed intermediate  position in both the reclined and semi upright modes.    At best it gives no biomechanic advantage and was probably intended to add comfort → .   Misled by ” that treacherous guide  which only turns up truthfully when the ergonomics are fully correct”.   If this mode becomes a part of the unstable intermediate mode it allows a faster transition and also gives the user the choice for dynamic motion and rehabilitation.  A win-win.   Scrapping a fixed intermediate mode reduces manufacturing costs. A win-win-win!   Further described in WORK-CHAIRS, a new breed with a reclined mode→.

Next, return to The 2Tilt RECLINED MODE for fully safe sitting. →  or check the effects of The upright seated posture. →

 

Sit/Stand & stools

A Partial solution.

The Sit Stand concept  slowed following work showing less difference in sitting and standing intra-discal pressures than was first thought.  A comeback is occurring as field research has shown the importance of keeping staff exercised.   

Effect of axial loading  on IVD intra-discal pressure

Originally Nachemson and others showed that the standing position had a lower intradiscal pressure than upright sitting.  This suggested that incorporating sitting and standing, with a sit/stand desk, could be beneficial if designed into an office environment.
This concept  has slowed following later work (Wilke 1999) showing less difference in sitting and standing intra-discal pressures and the general recent ergonomic improvement of office chairs.

Effect of movement on the IV disc

The negative consequences of constrained sitting has been described by a number of authorities.  See ☛ Exercise & movement→.  It has been shown that disc nutrition depends on the pumping action of pressure changes due to changes of position and is probably important in avoiding later degenerative changes.  In the context of chair design, movement is comforting and avoids the adverse effects of a prolonged constrained static upright mode on general health (See (Lueder R 2002).


Variable standing may be ergonomically superior to the prolonged use of existing upright chairs.    See  
BIOMECHANICS that determine safe sitting→).      There may be situations where the concept is applicable and as the  importance of keeping staff exercised is increasingly recognised.   Relevant is an authorative report by The UK DoH (Dept. of Health, Dept of Children, Schools & Families.) on ‘Sedentary Behaviour and Obesity: Review of the Current Scientific Evidence’. → https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/213745/dh_128225.pdf

But, on the other hand, prolonged standing is tiring and affects venous return.   Most people prefer sitting, because it is energy efficient with less action by the Erector Spinae muscles than when standing.   Whether it can adversely affect body and cognitive abilities is uncertain as some research contrarily shows the opposite including a shorter time in performing a task, as might be expected.

A large numberof standing desks are being marketed.      Having spent many hours in operating theatres, I am perhaps somewhat biased against prolonged standing.    The design of recent showpiece offices emphasise large attractive space where staff can socialise, discus innovation and shown looking happy.   Being an indoor environment the adverse factors shown in  OFFICE HEALTH, Stress & Ergonomics cannot be ignored if optimum productivity is required.  Of fundamental importance.

Not all office work is suitable for a Sit/Stand system and prolonged sitting may be required.     A 2T (3M) chair is essential and preferably the 4M workstation.  2T CONCEPT a full solution

 HAS

Sit-Stand.Com is official supplier to the Get Britain Standing campaign. For summary guidance please visit: Benefits of Standing   They say Sit-stand desks (commonly referred to as “standing desks”) are increasingly expected to become the norm in the near future. Already in Scandinavia 90% of office workers enjoy the health benefits of sit-stand desks largely driven by workplace health legislation.

Screen Shot 2018-06-16 at 13.25.30

For an example  by RAAAF (Rietveld Architecture-Art-Affordances) , See ☛ The end of sitting?  →

Office-based’ studies

The first known ‘office-based’ study in the Department of Clinical Sciences and Nutrition, at the University of Chester, Chester, UK, 2016,  compared two days of continuous monitored capillary blood glucose responses to sitting and standing in normally desk-based workers.  The results provided encouraging signs of attenuating post-prandial glycaemic excursion  and why avoiding continuous sitting at work could benefit cardio-metabolic health.  The following articles are referenced:-

  1. Prologed standing is tiring and affects venous return and can adversely affect body and cognitive abilities. – Are Standing Desks The Biggest Sham Ever?→    Wilmot EG, Edwardson CL, Achana FA, et al. Sedentary time in adults and the association with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and death: systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetologia 2012;55:2895–905.
  2. Saunders TJ, Larouche R, Colley RC, et al. Acute sedentary behaviour and markers of cardiometabolic risk: a systematic review of intervention studies. J Nutr Metab 2012;2012:712435.
  3. Gennuso KP, Gangnon RE, Matthews CE, et al. Sedentary behavior, physical activity, and markers of health in older adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2013;45:1493–500.
  4. Leon-Munoz LM, Martinez-Gomez D, Balboa-Castillo T, et al. Continued sedentariness, change in sitting time, and mortality in older adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2013;45:1501–7.
  5.  Levine JA, Schleusner SJ, Jensen MD. Energy expenditure of nonexercise activity. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;72:1451–4.
  6.  Koepp GA, Manohar CU, McCrady-Spitzer SK, et al. Treadmill desks: a 1-year prospective trial. Obesity 2013;21:705–11.
  7.  Peddie MC, Bone JL, Rehrer NJ, et al. Breaking prolonged sitting reduces postprandial glycemia in healthy, normal-weight adults: a randomized crossover trial. Am J Clin Nutr 2013;98:358–66.
  8.  Pescatello LS, Arena R, Riebe D, et al. (Eds). ACSM’s Guidelines for exercise testing and prescription. Baltimore: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, 2013.
  9.  Speck RM, Schmitz KH. Energy expenditure comparison: a pilot study of standing instead of sitting at work for obesity prevention. Prev Med 2011;52:283–4.
  10.  Blaak EE, Antoine JM, Benton D, et al. Impact of postprandial glycaemia on health and prevention of disease. Obesity Rev 2012;13:923–84.
  11. Ben Schiller Service FJ. Glucose variability. Diabetes 2013;62:1398–404.
  12.  Satya Krishna SV, Kota SK, Modi KD. Glycemic variability: clinical implications. Indian J Endocrinol Metab 2013;17:611–19.   A number of bio-mechanically efficient stools have been produced which usually incorporate a FTS, contouring and sometimes iliac support.
  13. Paul Matthews,  from Office Fitness Ltd.point out that sleeping burns 59 calories an hour, sitting about 60 calories and standing about 80 to 90 calories.    Office workforce should do low activity for  5 hours a day.
  14. The Journal of Sports Medicine in 2015 published research suggesting standing for two hours spread out in a  typical working day.
  15. The Mayo Clinic suggests getting up for 10 minutes out of every hour.

Offices could have standing as the default working option with seating as the alternate mode.  The 2T (4M version).takes an opposite but complementary approach with the reclined mode being the default and easy ability to stand subsidiary.

Sit/Stand desks

Offered by the Market is often little more than an upright office chair and a variable height table.   Improvements include  Screen Shot 2018-10-17 at 18.21.17

For a more sophisticated solution, a ‘stand’ mode can  be incorporated into the a 3M ‘desk-less’ workstation which then becomes a 4M concept (and a ‘full’ solution ).  This extra mode results in the  first change since the inception of the 2T concept in 1998.   (See ☛workstations→).

Stools

Screen Shot 2015-09-30 at 15.05.52

Screen Shot 2015-09-30 at 15.15.20☜ The Pesko ERGO FLEX M 1_1 also incorporates a ‘wobble”.

A recent, more complex example is the Freedman chair in which the 2 halves of the seat can move independently, intending to accommodate spinal irregularity (scoliosis) and pelvic side tilting.  The emphasis is on the FTS concept and movement.☟

freedman-chair

Screen Shot 2017-02-20 at 18.22.18The HiLo
by Box Clever 2016, an innovation agency led by industrial designers Bret Recor and Seth Murray for Knoll  Knoll produce a number of high end task chairs with semi-remediation such as pelvic support but have not yet made the jump into a fully remediated chair.

It seems to be an indoor version of the old ‘Shooting sticks’ that I used to use.  Very sensible. (→ https://www.knoll.com/search-results?searchtext=HiLo&parent=1347382605724 )

 The exact converse system

is designed to get the user off the stool to make way for another user.   A good example is an expensive designer stool with 4 legs and painted black as used in Mac shops.  Photo on 06-01-2015 at 12.49Being an enthusiastic  Mac user myself, I am only too familiar with these.  They have a round, horizontal seat without conturing which allows point pressure between the ischial tuberosities (ITs) and the hard surface.   They have a newer model which is ergonomically not much better.

Problems may arise for staff & users who have to sit on them for longer periods. The view is of myself but It can be seen repeated in some random shots of staff users.   In the unavoidable, high loaded, upright position, the pelvis tilts backwards due to  the horizontal surface of the stool seat.  This is augmented by leaning forward, but some slight positive effect may occur by taking weight on the arms.

Screen Shot 2015-01-20 at 12.27.40

A light hearted account of 19c office conditions is relevant here.

Next ☛ A FULL SOLUTION

The FORWARD TILTED SEAT (FTS).

A Partial solution.

The forward tilted seat concept preserves lumbar spinal lordosis and allows freedom of movement.

Screen Shot 2018-09-22 at 15.05.21As already described ☛ Why? Mandal’s Homo sedens workers in Scandinavia, advocated a seat that was tilted forward and down by 20-30° from the horizontal, allowing the hips to extend to 120-130˚ and the pelvis to tilt forward with the lower spinal joints adopting the correct, safe, lordotic posture.   No back rest was necessary and the torso was free to move.   The  unsupported spine may incur slightly greater intra-discal loading probably from muscle co-contraction which is tiring and makes the FTS unpopular.   Makhsous (Makhsous M. 2003), has shown that sitting on a horizontal surface involves lumbar flexion relative to standing and   has also shown that with seat angled down, weight is largely shifted to the proximal half of the thighs at 18°. This was also shown in previous work (Corlett, 1999, Eklund et al, 1982, Schoberth, 1978).  This is relevant for  it’s short use in a 3M chair.

Forward tilted seat

The kneeling component of the Balans chair, shown, is to prevent forward slipping.  With a static FTS this tendency to slide forward is tiring to resist.  Alternative options are non-slip materials, memory Screen Shot 2018-12-20 at 14.46.36(See ☛ 2T Upright mode→)
Mandal determined, by tilted incrementally the chair seat and work surface, that an optimal position resulted in a correct lumbo-sacral lordosis and hip extension. Most people with back pain will find this very comfortable, but for the first weeks you will only be able to sit like this for 5-10 minutes, because your back muscles need training.”  ☞ Mandal

See WHY? Mandal’s Homo sedens.→

 

MandalIn a later study, Mandal concluded that the table should be at least half the person’s height (80-90 cm for older pupils) and that the chair should be at least one-third the person’s height (50-60 cm for older pupils). . The tabletop should slope backward 10-15 deg.    The seat should be capable of sloping forward 10-15 deg.

Screen Shot 2018-06-27 at 18.32.39The Edge Desk

A folding computer desk and chair designed to be stored anywhere.   Similar to the Balans but more convenient , folds and has a worktop.  the knee support looks more comfortable. (<https://www.cnet.com/news/the-edge-desk-is-a-portable-all-in-one-office/?ftag=CAD-04-10aae9d&bhid=21821882752016996385501688627261>}

The forward saddle seat

FTS Advertisment for 'saddle chair'Available 2020.   An illustration from an advertisment explaining the concept for this seat, designed by David James France, an Australian chiropractor. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/workhorsesaddlechair/workhorse-saddle-chairs-improve-your-posture-and-w?ref=pr.go2.fund&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pr.go2.fund

The Ischial Off Load’ system

The Ischial Off Load’ system is a variant consisting of a convex chair seat so that the  front half of the seat is tilted forward approximating to a FTS.  It is now incorporated in several office chairs.  ☛ Ischial ‘off-load’ system