Abstract

Up to 81% of individuals who are fluent in sign language (signers) report pain. Non-native signers (with non-signing, non-deaf parents) report greater pain than natives (≥1 signing, deaf parent). The goal of this study was to develop a composite measure of injury risk (the modified Strain Index for signers) based on previously identified biomechanics unique to signers and examine scores across sub-groups of natives and non-natives. Non-natives were hypothesized to have greater pain and higher composite scores than natives. Ten natives and 15 non-natives used a numeric scale to rate pain while signing. Measures included ‘micro’ rests, muscle activation, ballistic signing, non-neutral joint angle, and work envelope. Descriptive statistics were used to create categorical ratings and backward elimination multiple linear regression to establish rank order of the biomechanical tasks. Participant performance was rated, and the product of the multipliers across tasks created a score. Pain intensity was associated with the composite score (r = 0.46; p = 0.02), however there was no difference between natives (score = 13.39 ± 3.1) and non-natives (score = 19.55 ± 4.7; p = 0.34). This work presents an approach to incorporate multiple biomechanical factors into a single, composite measure unique to signers, however further evidence-based adjustments are needed to enhance its robustness.

摘要

多达 81% 的手语流利的人（手语者）报告疼痛。非母语手语者（有无手语的非聋父母）报告的疼痛比本地人（≥1 手语，聋哑父母）更大。本研究的目标是基于先前确定的手语者独有的生物力学，开发一种综合的伤害风险衡量指标（手语者的修正应变指数），并检查本地人和非本地人亚组的分数。假设非本地人比本地人有更大的疼痛和更高的综合分数。10 名本地人和 15 名非本地人在签名时使用数字量表来评估疼痛程度。措施包括“微”休息、肌肉激活、弹道信号、非中性关节角度和工作范围。描述性统计用于创建分类评级和向后消除多元线性回归以建立生物力学任务的等级顺序。对参与者的表现进行评级，并且跨任务的乘数乘积创造了一个分数。疼痛强度与综合评分相关（r = 0.46；p = 0.02），但是本地人（分数 = 13.39 ± 3.1）和非本地人（分数 = 19.55 ± 4.7；p = 0.34）之间没有差异。这项工作提出了一种方法，可将多种生物力学因素合并到签名者独有的单一复合测量中，但需要进一步的循证调整以增强其稳健性。疼痛强度与综合评分相关（r = 0.46；p = 0.02），但是本地人（分数 = 13.39 ± 3.1）和非本地人（分数 = 19.55 ± 4.7；p = 0.34）之间没有差异。这项工作提出了一种方法，可将多种生物力学因素合并到签名者独有的单一复合测量中，但需要进一步的循证调整以增强其稳健性。疼痛强度与综合评分相关（r = 0.46；p = 0.02），但是本地人（分数 = 13.39 ± 3.1）和非本地人（分数 = 19.55 ± 4.7；p = 0.34）之间没有差异。这项工作提出了一种方法，可将多种生物力学因素整合到签名者独有的单一复合测量中，但需要进一步的循证调整以增强其稳健性。