Surgical Ergonomics in OBGYN

Surgical Ergonomics in OBGYN Trainees & Attendings

This is a voluntary research study to implement and assess the efficacy of interventions aimed to improve surgical ergonomics in OBGYN residents, fellows, and attendings and decrease the incidence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMD). We want to learn the baseline incidence of WMRD in our population and to see if the implementation of a surgical ergonomics lecture, pre-operative surgical ergonomics time-out, and intra-operative stretch breaks will improve the incidence of WRMD in this population.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Current OBGYN Attending, Resident, or Fellow at University Hospitals
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Surgical Ergonomics Lecture; Behavioral: Pre-Incision Surgical Ergonomics Time Out; Behavioral: Intra-operative stretch breaks

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 50
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Ayesha Kar, MD; Phone Number: 2168441000; Email: ayesha.karkasal@uhhospitals.org

Study Locations

• United States
  • Ohio
    • Beachwood, Ohio, United States, 44122
      • University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center
      • Contact: Ayesha Kar, MD; Phone Number: 2168441000; Email: ayesha.karkasal@uhhospitals.org
    • Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44106
      • University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
      • Contact: Ayesha Kar, MD; Phone Number: 2168441000; Email: ayesha.karkasal@uhhospitals.org

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Current attending in the OBGYN department at University Hospitals Current resident or fellow in the OBGYN department at University Hospitals Participation in laparoscopic or open surgical procedures

Exclusion Criteria:

Not a current fellow, resident, or attending in the OBGYN department at University Hospitals

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention Arm; Intervention 1: Surgical Ergonomics Lecture Intervention 2: 6 months of pre-surgical time out procedure focusing on surgical ergonomics Intervention 3: 6 months of intra-operative stretch breaks	Behavioral: Surgical Ergonomics Lecture; 60 min lecture regarding surgical ergonomics; Behavioral: Pre-Incision Surgical Ergonomics Time Out; Pre-incision time-out (30-60s) focusing on surgical ergonomics in OR prior to starting a surgery; Behavioral: Intra-operative stretch breaks; 30-60s breaks every 90 min to perform stretches during a surgical procedure

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Symptom frequency as measured by the Cornell Muscular Discomfort (MSK) Questionnaire	Symptom frequency is measured on a likert scale of 0-4, with 0 being never and 4 being several times a day.	weekly x 12 months
Symptom severity as measured by the Cornell Muscular Discomfort (MSK) Questionnaire	Symptom severity is measured on a scale of 0-3, with 0 being slightly uncomfortable and 3 being very uncomfortable.	weekly x 12 months
Work interference as measured by the Cornell Muscular Discomfort (MSK) Questionnaire	Work interference is measured on a scale of 0-3, with 0 being not at all and 3 being substantially interfered.	weekly x 12 months
Total Cornell Muscular Discomfort Scores	For each body region, a region-specific Cornell MSK discomfort score will be calculated as: Frequency × Severity × Work Interference. This yields a possible score range of 0-36 per body region.	Weekly x 12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Incidence of work related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMDs)	Initial incidence (presence or absence) of work related MSK disorders	1 month
Number of days of painkiller use	Measure of how many days per week a participant took over the counter medications (such as NSAIDs or tylenol) for musculoskeletal pain related to work. Scoring includes 0 days, 1-3 days, 4-5 days, daily	weekly x 12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Ayesha Kar Kasal, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Park AE, Zahiri HR, Hallbeck MS, Augenstein V, Sutton E, Yu D, Lowndes BR, Bingener J. Intraoperative "Micro Breaks" With Targeted Stretching Enhance Surgeon Physical Function and Mental Focus: A Multicenter Cohort Study. Ann Surg. 2017 Feb;265(2):340-346. doi: 10.1097/SLA.0000000000001665.
• Tsunemi M, Matsuzaki I, Hori Y, Hayashi K, Tamada H, Yamada S, Matsuzaki K, Sakai K, Kamijima M, Ebara T. The One-Minute Triple Stretch Reduces Musculoskeletal Discomfort in Endoscopic Assistants: A Crossover Trial With Motion Analysis. Dig Endosc. 2026 Jan;38(1):e70040. doi: 10.1111/den.70040. Epub 2025 Oct 13.
• Restaino S, D'Indinosante M, Perelli F, Arcieri M, Cherchi V, Petrillo M, Cavaliere AF, Cianci S, Pellecchia G, Meniconi RL, Coppola A, Chiantera V, Scambia G, Driul L, Vizzielli G; SPIGC Working Group. Ergonomics in the operating room and surgical training: a survey on the Italian scenario. Front Public Health. 2024 Aug 7;12:1417250. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1417250. eCollection 2024.
• Young RJ, Allen A, McIntire D, Robinson EF, Bougie O, Kho KA. Work Related Pain in Gynecologic Surgeons - A National Survey. J Minim Invasive Gynecol. 2025 Jul;32(7):614-620.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.jmig.2025.01.014. Epub 2025 Feb 1.

Helpful Links

• American College of Surgeons: Surgical Ergonomics Recommendations

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): August 12, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): July 16, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): July 16, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 19, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 19, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): May 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 27, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 19, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: medical education; surgical ergonomics; obstetrics & gynecology
• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY20251677

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Institution specific study

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No