Surgeon Core-strengthening Program as a Modifier for Exertion Associated With Vaginal Surgery (SCORE)

Loyola University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Musculoskeletal Pain; Musculoskeletal Injury

Treatments: Other: Execise Group; Other: Control Group

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06525701

218292

Details and patient eligibility

About

Work-related musculoskeletal pain and injury is a growing concern in surgery. Vaginal surgery has unique ergonomic risks, but no studies have addressed the potential for an exercise regimen to reduce physical strain by vaginal surgeons

Full description

Surgical ergonomics is a burgeoning field, spurred by the recognition of the high prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal pain and injury in practicing surgeons including obstetrician/gynecologists. Surgery is often a demanding physical task, and the muscles and joints that are stressed vary by the surgical approach. Vaginal surgery has unique ergonomic challenges, particularly for assistants who may need to laterally bend their torsos to visualize the surgical field while still holding retractors. This is often a compromising physical position for the back, the shoulders, and sometimes the neck which increases the risk of acute or chronic musculoskeletal injury. The risk of injury can be thought of as a discrepancy between the demands of the task and the individual's physical capabilities. Surgeons' injury risk may be decreased if their physical capabilities can be improved through exercise. Most existing publications on surgical ergonomics have focused on raising awareness and on environmental changes such as optimizing surgeon posture during the case or introducing micro-breaks and stretching. Few publications have assessed a structured exercise program with the goal of decreasing surgeon pain or fatigue during and after surgery. To our knowledge, no studies have addressed this in vaginal surgery.

Enrollment: 18 patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Participant: ob/gyn resident or urology resident or urogyn fellow or urogyn attending Case: vaginal prolapse surgery >2 hours in length

Exclusion criteria

Participant:

1. Actively in physical therapy
2. Joint surgery or joint injury within last 12 weeks
3. Pregnant
4. Less than 6 weeks postpartum

Case:

1. Vaginal surgery <2 hours in length
2. Non-prolapse vaginal surgery

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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18 participants in 2 patient groups

Exercise Group

Experimental group

Description:

Participants randomized to the exercise group will be asked to perform the SCORE workout two times each week for 4 weeks prior to their urogynecology rotation and for 4 weeks during the rotation.

Treatment:

Other: Control Group

Other: Execise Group

Control Group

Active Comparator group

Description:

No additional exercises or tasks are requested of control participants. Control group participants will perform or not perform exercise as they otherwise would outside of the study

Treatment:

Other: Control Group

Other: Execise Group