The Strain Index does not evaluate segmental vibration (such as from hand tools); hence, this tool will not predict the risk of hand-arm vibration syndrome.
The Strain Index does not evaluate contact trauma; hence, this tool will not predict the risk of hypothenar hammer syndrome.
The Strain Index is limited to predicting risk for distal upper extremity neuromusculoskeletal disorders.
Three of the six task variables are subjectively evaluated by the analyst.
The multiplier values are primarily based on the authors’ professional opinions with support from physiological, biomechanical, and epidemiological principals as opposed to a mathematical relationship between task variables.
At the time the Strain Index was originally published, it had been tested on only 25 jobs in one industry.