Development of a Topical Analgesic Wristband for Noodle-Sheet Peeling Workers in Sisaket Province

Abstract

          Introduction: Peeling noodle sheets is a labor-intensive task involving prolonged wrist use, which can cause workers to suffer cumulative wrist injuries.

          Objective: To compare an average hand and wrist dysfunction severity, hand ability, and hand grip strength proportion scores of noodle peelers in a Sisaket Province noodle factory before and after the experimental and control groups used wrist bands.

          Methodology: An experimental group and a control group, each consisting of 26 participants, were included in this quasi-experimental study. Both groups were provided with information about wrist care, and the experimental group was given the topical analgesic wristband as an intervention.

          Results: Following a week of using the analgesic wrist bands, the experimental group's mean scores for hand and wrist dysfunction before and after the experiment were 22.62 and 18.12 points, respectively, while the control group's scores were 18.50 and 17.54 points. This difference was statistically significant (p-value<0.05) for both groups. Prior to and following the experiment, the experimental group's mean scores for hand function ability were 10.42 and 8.92 points, respectively, and their mean scores for hand grip strength ratio were 0.43 and 0.49, respectively. Both of these variations were statistically significant (p-value<0.05).

          Conclusion: By improving the proportion of hand grip power and decreasing hand deformity, the designed wrist band significantly improves the capacity to utilize hands for safer work.