Is Borg's perceived exertion scale a useful indicator of muscular and cardiovascular load in blue-collar workers with lifting tasks? A cross-sectional workplace study

摘要

Purpose To investigate associations between perceived exertion and objectively assessed muscular and cardiovascular load during a full working day among workers with manual lifting tasks. Methods A total of 159 men and 41 women from 14 workplaces with manual lifting tasks participated. Participants reported perceived exertion (BORG-CR10) at midday and after work. Surface electromyography of the thigh, lower back and neck muscles were normalized to isometric voluntary contractions (MVC) to express relative muscle load during the day. Cardiovascular load was measured with electrocardiography and calculated as the average percentage of the heart rate reserve capacity (((heart rate during work - resting heart rate) / (maximum heart rate - resting heart rate)) * 100) during the day. Results Using linear regression, significant but weak associations (beta <0.23) were observed between perceived exertion and (1) high muscle activity (>60 % of MVC) of the neck muscles and (2) inactivity (= 4 (high exertion), referencing