Saskia Baltrusch

54 Chapter 3 Test Procedure Objective outcome measure Subjective outcome measures GD LD PTD 8. Ladder Climbing Climbing up and down a ladder twice. Time recording stopped when both feet were on the floor again. Performance time (s) x x 9. Bending the trunk Bending forward as much as possible, knees extended. Distance fingertip to floor (cm) x x 10. Wide Stance Standing with feet 20 cm apart, gradually increasing distance by 20 cm. Maximal distance (cm) x x 11. Rotation of the trunk Rotating the trunk 5 times to both side. None x x 12. Squatting Squatting down to the floor 3 times, touching the floor with the fingers. None x x GD: General discomfort; LD: Local Discomfort; PTD: Perceived Task Difficulty Lower Lifting This task is part of the FCE. It is an incremental test, that assesses the maximum weight a person can lift safely. Since lower lifting is one of the main activities that exposes people to high back loads and hence a main risk factor for low- back pain, we included this task, with a maximum weight of 23 kg to stay within the limits proposed in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) guidelines [16]. No specific lifting technique was advised, participants were free to select mode of execution, since we wanted to keep the situation close to real work conditions. Due to the limited maximum mass, we expected a ceiling effect in this task. We therefore emphasize the effect of the exoskeleton on the subjective performance for this task. Carrying As carrying is a combination of walking and lifting and is often required in manual material handling, this component of the FCE was included.