By April Chong

AS PART of their final year project, a team of mechanical engineering students from Ngee Ann Polytechnic worked with Singapore General Hospital (SGH) to design a device for patients with lower back pain.

The tool consists of a harness to help lift the upper body from the pelvic region, reducing pressure to the lower back when the user is sitting down, in a process known as traction.

Currently, traction for the lower back is done in a lying position using a set of harnesses and there is no known commercially available device for use in an upright postion, said SGH's senior principal physiotherapist Dr Celia Tan.

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