The development of exoskeletons aimed at enhancing the mobility and autonomy of people with disabilities marks a significant advance toward social and occupational inclusion, fostering greater independence and improved quality of life. However, their implementation poses multidisciplinary challenges, including technical issues, usability, cost, and user acceptance. This article synthesizes the main challenges, recent advancements, and future perspectives identified in scientific literature through a systematic review conducted under the PRISMA^® methodology. Forty-three high-impact publications indexed in SCOPUS, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Taylor & Francis, IEEE Xplore, and PubMed were analyzed, showing an almost perfect inter-rater agreement (Cohen’s Kappa = 0.8390). The findings underscore the need to optimize control systems, reduce costs, and improve device adaptability. Artificial intelligence emerges as a key enabler to overcome these limitations, offering more efficient, affordable, and personalized solutions. This work provides an up-to-date overview of the field and outlines future directions for exoskeleton research and development, highlighting their transformative potential in the lives of people with disabilities.

Both for design issues and for the study, analysis, and understanding of the interaction of workers with exoskeletons, the study of adverse effects provides criteria to improve the design of more efficient exoskeletons with better ergonomics and long-term usability. In this work, a scoping review was carried out on adverse effects due to the prolonged use of upper-limb exoskeletons, which have been evidenced in the scientific literature. The causes of the effects are described in terms of their impacts on the physiological, psychological, and technological aspects that affect the user. A scoping review of articles of the last ten years on negative effects of upper-extremity exoskeletons for industrial tasks was carried out following the guidelines of the PRISMA^® methodology with three phases: formulation of questions, definition of scopes and exhaustive search in SCOPUS, Web of Science, Science Direct, Taylor & Francis, and PubMed. The selection was made by two review authors with a Cohen’s Kappa coefficient of 0.9530, indicating high agreement. The effectiveness of upper-limb exoskeletons depends on the environment and the task, so an adaptable ergonomic design, field validations, and standards are required to ensure their functionality and acceptance. Use of exoskeletons mainly activates the posterior deltoid and latissimus dorsi and reduces the activity of muscles such as the trapezius, pectoralis major, anterior and middle deltoids, biceps brachii, brachioradialis, and flexor carpi radialis.

Population ageing is a growing global trend. It was estimated that by 2050, people over 60 years of age will represent 35% of the population in industrialised countries. This context demands strategies that incorporate technologies, such as fall detection systems, to facilitate remote monitoring and the automatic activation of risk alarms, thus improving quality of life. This article presents a scoping review of the leading technological solutions developed over the last decade for detecting falls in older adults, describing their principles of operation, effectiveness, advantages, limitations, and future trends in their development. The review was conducted under the PRISMA^® methodology, including articles indexed in SCOPUS, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, PubMed, IEEE Xplore and Taylor & Francis. There is a predominance in the use of inertial systems that use accelerometers and gyroscopes, valued for their low cost and wide availability. However, those approaches that combine image analysis with artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms show superiority in terms of accuracy and robustness. Similarly, progress has been made in the development of multisensory solutions based on IoT technologies, capable of integrating information from various sources, which optimises decision-making in real time.

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) remain a critical occupational health issue for nursing personnel worldwide, resulting from physically demanding tasks such as patient handling and prolonged working hours. These injuries not only compromise nursing staff’s health but also impair their performance, productivity, and overall well-being. This review analyzes the current state of assistive technologies aimed at preventing MSDs in nursing staff, highlighting their effectiveness, implementation challenges, and potential benefits. A systematic selection of the scientific literature from major databases including Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed, Taylor & Francis, and ProQuest was conducted, complemented by open-access patent records. The screening process, involving two independent reviewers, achieved moderate agreement (Cohen’s Kappa = 0.418). The findings reveal that the most affected anatomical areas include the back, shoulders, and knees. Technological interventions are classified into three main categories: physical assistance devices, digital monitoring tools, and training programs. These integrated approaches offer promising avenues to enhance occupational safety, reduce injury rates, and improve nurses’ quality of life and professional performance.

Background: The working day entails a lot of downtime, causing slight discomfort to temporary - permanent injuries, representing an economic health impact for companies and workers. Active breaks (AB) are proposed as an effective tool to reduce the effects of occupational risks. The objective is to design a AB program as a strategy in the management of musculoskeletal symptoms (MS) in office workers (OW). Methods: This is a longitudinal cohort study with a quantitative approach, involving 26 workers. Based on the review of the evidence and an evaluation with the Nordic Standardized Questionnaire (NSQ) and the Visual Analog Pain Scale (VAS), appropriate exercises for the population were established. A program with its respective dosage was designed and it was validated by the judgment of three experts. The content Validity Index (CVI) was used. Results: These revealed a higher frequency of discomfort in the neck, shoulders and thoracolumbar region, decrease in MS in frequency, duration and intensity of both clinical and statistical pain (p<0.001). Conclusions: The AB program, based on yoga, determined changes in the intensity, duration and frequency of the MS. It served as a strategy for MS management.

Product design strategies play a pivotal role in advancing responsible production and consumption by enabling the transition toward more sustainable industrial practices. In this context, the rapid evolution of technology and artificial intelligence is fostering the development of innovative and sustainability-oriented strategies, which are increasingly embedded in the early stages of the design process, thereby facilitating the transformation and optimisation of contemporary industrial systems. This scoping review presents advances in product design strategies that promote responsible production and consumption, along with the impacts of their implementation, the associated challenges and limitations, and future perspectives. This manuscript was prepared according to the PRISMA^® guidelines, using scientific literature from databases and repositories such as Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and Taylor & Francis. Document selection was conducted by two observers, yielding a Cohen’s Kappa coefficient of 0.840. A total of 147 articles were included for reference information extraction. The product design process plays a crucial role in promoting more sustainable production and guiding responsible consumption habits, as it has proven effective in reducing resource use and waste generation from a life cycle perspective. However, its impact also depends on human-related factors such as perceptions, habits, levels of trust, and usage conditions, highlighting the interaction between product design and consumer behaviour.