Fixed and personalized sit-stand schedules tested for lower back pain
Workers with existing back pain reported improvements with both approaches, but the abstract leaves uncertainty about the size of any advantage between schedules.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Both sitting-and-standing schedules were followed by less severe worst back pain among workers who already had pain. The fixed schedule also had a reported reduction in average pain and better adherence. However, the abstract reports changes within each group without a numerical between-group comparison, limiting how confidently readers can judge relative effectiveness.
The abstract supplies within-group changes without confidence intervals or a numerical between-group effect estimate. This limits assessment of whether pain changes differed reliably between schedules.
What researchers found
Change in worst lower back pain
Pain was scored out of 10; negative changes mean less pain. These are changes within each group over 3 months, not a direct comparison between schedules.
How the schedules differed
The fixed group followed prescribed sitting and standing intervals. The personalized group could choose its own timing or change posture before discomfort. Both groups already had back pain when they entered the study.
Acceptability and other outcomes
Both schedules were acceptable, with higher adherence to fixed timing. Stress, concentration and presenteeism (functioning at work while unwell) improved within the fixed group. Sitting time fell within the personalized group. These changes do not establish superiority on those secondary outcomes.
The original publication
Do fixed or personalised sit-stand desk ratios improve lower back pain? A randomised trial.
Brakenridge CL, Johnston V, Andrews NE et al.
Appl Ergon · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41124790
- Record checked
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