Physiological factors in stretcher carriage performance

In this study we examined the anthropometric and physiological factors that may account for the ability to carry a casualty on a stretcher. Eleven you ng soldiers were pretested to obtain their anthropometry, body composition, physical fitness, and muscle cross-sectional areas. They then performed a two-person manual carry of a stretcher containing an 82-kg manikin while wa lking on a treadmill at a speed of 4.8 km/h. Subjects walked until volition al fatigue, as indicated by slippage of the stretcher from their hands. Ave rage (SD) carriage time was 2.7(1.4) min with a range of 1.4-6.4 min. A ste pwise multiple linear regression revealed that forearm bone-plus-muscle cro ss-sectional area, thigh muscle cross-sectional area, and push-up performan ce accounted for most of the variance in hand carriage time (r(2) = 0.99, P < 0.001). These data suggest that muscle cross-sectional area and upper-bo dy muscular endurance are important physiological factors in the ability to carry a loaded stretcher by hand.