Effects of Adjustable School Furniture

October 1, 2019 updated by: Nejc Sarabon, University of Primorska

Effects of Adjustable School Furniture on Health-related Parameters in Students

The aim of this study is to evaluate the level of mismatch between students and school furniture and to assess the effects of adjustable furniture on sedentary behavior, physical activity levels, and sitting posture in students. Firstly, we will obtain the anthropometric measures of all students participating in the study. Secondly, we will calculate the mismatch between the student's anthropometric measures and current school furniture. In the next step, the participants will be separated in two groups, the experimental and the control group. The participants in the experimental group will use adjustable school furniture for one week, whereas the control group will use the conventional school furniture. All the participants will wear an accelerometer for five consecutive days. The results obtained will indicate the furniture mismatch prevalence and demonstrate the effects of adjustable furniture on health-related parameters in students.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Unknown

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Sedentary behavior is a risk factor affecting not only working population but also adolescents. Students spend long period of time seated, which is being associated with reports of musculoskeletal discomfort and pain. The high level of mismatch between students and school furniture is being associated with adolescent lower back pain. The aim of this study is to evaluate the level of mismatch between students and school furniture and to assess the effects of adjustable furniture on sedentary behavior, physical activity levels, and sitting posture in students. Before the experimental part of the study, we will obtain the anthropometric measures of all students participating in the study to calculate the mismatch between the students and the school furniture. In the next step, the participants will be separated to the experimental or the control group. The experimental group will use adjustable school furniture for one week whereas the control group will use the conventional school furniture. All the participants will wear an accelerometer for five consecutive days. The participants will also complete questionnaires about the sedentary behavior and physical activity levels. The sitting posture will be evaluated with Rapid Upper Limb Assessment tool (RULA). Moreover, at the baseline and on the last day of measurements we will measure the classroom environment factors (light, noise, air flow, temperature). The results obtained will indicate the furniture mismatch prevalence and demonstrate the effects of adjustable furniture on health-related parameters in students.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Slovenia
      • Skofja Loka, Slovenia, 4220
        • Carpenter High School Skofja Loka

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

16 years to 24 years (ADULT, CHILD)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • aged between 16 and 24 years
  • student

Exclusion Criteria:

  • body mass index > 30kg/m2
  • pain presence in any musculoskeletal part > 3 on 10-level scale
  • presence of any non-communicable chronical diseases
  • pregnancy

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
  • Allocation: RANDOMIZED
  • Interventional Model: PARALLEL
  • Masking: NONE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
NO_INTERVENTION: Control Group
The control group will use conventional school furniture.
EXPERIMENTAL: Adjustable Furniture Group
The experimental group will use adjustable ergonomic school furniture.
Device: Adjustable Furniture
The intervention will include adjustable school furniture.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change of weekly physical activity levels
Time Frame: 5 days
Weekly physical activity levels will be measured with accelerometers.
5 days
Change of sitting time
Time Frame: 5 days
Weekly sitting time will be measured with accelerometers.
5 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Adolescent Sedentary Activity Questionnaire
Time Frame: Baseline and after 5 days.
The Adolescent Sedentary Activity Questionnaire is used to subjectively assess sedentary behavior. Students are asked to think about a normal week, during school term, and to report how long they usually spent engaged in 11 different sedentary behaviors before and after school on each day of the week and on each day of the weekend. If two activities occurred at the same time (e.g., one hour in front of the television doing homework) the students are asked to estimate how much time was spent on each activity during that time (e.g., 45 min television and 15 min homework). Time spent in each category is calculated and time is also summed across categories to yield the total time per week spent in sedentary behavior. Higher outcome values present longer time in sedentary behavior (worse outcome).
Baseline and after 5 days.
Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents
Time Frame: Baseline and after 5 days
Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents is used to subjectively assess physical activity levels. The questionnaire addresses a habitual week. It consists of three sections, including physical activity in school, during transportation and leisure-time. Each section is further divided into different activity categories. School section: physical education and breaks between lessons. Transportation section: walking and cycling at least 10 minutes at a stretch. Leisure-time section: activities at least 10 min long. A measure of physical activity is then reached by multiplying the time spent for each activity with the corresponding metabolic equivalent (MET-value). Higher outcome value is better, since it indicates a higher level of physical activity and MET values.
Baseline and after 5 days
Anthropometric measurements of the students performed with anthropometer
Time Frame: Baseline
Anthropometric measurements will be performed to obtain the main measures that are needed to evaluate the user-furniture mismatch. All the measures will be taken with standard anthropometer, the unit of measure will be centimeter. We will measure Popliteal height, Buttock-popliteal length, Subscapular height, Thigh thickness. Elbow height sitting, Shoulder height sitting. With the measures obtained we will calculate the furniture mismatch for the following: Seat height, Seat depth, Seat to desk clearance, Desk height, Seat width, Upper edge of backrest. Higher percentage of the mismatch between the student's anthropometric measures and furniture indicates a worse outcome.
Baseline
Sitting posture
Time Frame: Baseline and after 5 days
The sitting posture will be evaluated with RULA (Rapid Upper Limb Assessment) tool.
Baseline and after 5 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Primorska

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Innorenew CoE

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ANTICIPATED)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 1, 2019

Primary Completion (ANTICIPATED)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 1, 2020

Study Completion (ANTICIPATED)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
April 1, 2020

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 24, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 29, 2018

First Posted (ACTUAL)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 31, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 2, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 1, 2019

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Classroom Ergonomics

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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