Dr Mehran Sanei introduces the new Fixbod Focus. If you suffer from back or neck pain related to poor posture, or would like to improve the aesthetics and functionality of your body, then the Focus posture training device can help.
Dr Mehran Sanei has been a dentist for over 30 years. After qualifying in 1992 he completed further training in maxillofacial surgery before achieving his master’s degree in prosthodontics and certificate of speciality in 1999.
Neck and back pain
Five years ago, Mehran became aware that many of his dental colleagues suffered from upper back and neck pain, particularly after treating patients for long periods of time. This pain would persist into the next day, when continued dentistry would exacerbate it further. He found his colleagues would feel relief during their holidays, but once back at work, the pain would return.
Naturally, this pain was due to bending over the patient with a protruding and twisted head in order to see into their mouth better. This poor position would cause chronic muscle fatigue that could be very painful and cause disturbances in their work pattern and sleep.
In addition to this, he also found these dentists would suffer from the same agonising discomfort when carrying out paperwork at home.
After a few very painful episodes, his colleagues would typically rely on analgesics and many visits to the physiotherapist and osteopath in the hope of a permanent cure, which would never arrive.
Mehran soon learnt that years of practising dentistry in poor postural positions was the cause of their pain (forward head posture, head bent down, slouching etc).
When mentioning and discussing these issues with a wider group of fellow dentists, he discovered many of them also suffered with the same problem. Some had pain so severe it resulted in them taking time off work and there were a good number of them who were young.
Causes of poor posture
- Occupations that encourage static work in sustained positions for long periods of time
- Modern lifestyle with excessive use of smart phones, computers, video games and TV contribute to developing a forward/downward head or slouching posture
- Many other conditions such as excess weight, physical injuries, age or stress.
Research and discoveries
Mehran looked into this further and carried out his own extensive online research. It became apparent that this problem was not only in dentistry, but occurs in a whole variety of other occupations too. This confirmed that many people were suffering with neck and back pain which was related to working with poor posture positions for long periods of time.
He also realised that even after physiotherapy and other therapeutic treatments, and once the pain had subsided, the sufferer would stop attending the physiotherapists and neglect their home exercises.
This would eventually allow poor posture to creep back in, especially when busy work schedules take over and we forget to maintain good postural positions.
So, it became apparent that there is a high relapse rate, resulting in the same problem returning with the pain getting worse each time.
Key statistics
- 80% of neck and back pain is caused by tight achy muscles due to bad posture
- Two thirds of the population will have suffered neck and back pain at some point in their life
- On average people spend two to four hours a day with their neck bent using smart phones and other handheld electronic devices
- For every inch your head sits forward, it gains 4.5kgs (10 pounds) in weight.
Creating a solution
Having searched for solutions, Mehran could not find anything that would help you hold a good postural position, so he decided to make one himself.
A homemade prototype device was soon born and Mehran and a few selected colleagues wore it everyday at work for two years which proved to be highly successful for their condition.
He continued to improve the design committing himself to extensive fact finding and discussions with his physiotherapy, osteopathy and orthopaedic colleagues. Their advice was hugely instrumental in guiding Mehran to creating more sophisticated models.
Testing and improving
A large part of the research and development phase also involved interviewing a number of dental and non-dental colleagues who suffered similar posture related pain. They also tested the prototypes whilst treating patients and carrying out administrative work which provided very helpful feedback that enabled industrial designers to refine every aspect and detail.
Results and evidence
The good news is that all the dentists who tested the device agreed that the device is definitely an integral part of clinical dentistry if they were to maintain a healthy, strong and pain-free working posture.
A posture training device was born…
The final product was named the Fixbod Focus and is a very exciting, positive and welcomed contribution to the prevention and therapy of posture related pain.
This device also has many other applications, such as desk work, exercise and any other activities which promote poor posture (looking down/forwards or slouching) for extended periods of time.
For more information please contact:
Dr Mehran Sanei
London, UK
Or visit https://www.fixbod.co.uk.
