Tips to improve your workstation:

· Arrange your work so you can sit or stand comfortably in a position that does not put stress on any specific area of your body. You should be able to keep your neck in a neutral position and minimize the need to look up or to the sides continuously while you are working.
· Eliminate most movement from your waist. Keep the workstation and workstation tools within reach without having to lean, bend, or twist at the waist frequently.
· Vary postures if possible.
· Take 10- to 15-second breaks frequently throughout your task. For example, look away from your computer monitor, stand up, or stretch your arms. Short breaks reduce eyestrain and buildup of muscle tension.
· Stretch your body by getting up out of your chair and stretching your arms, shoulders, back, and legs. When you are sitting, shrug and relax your shoulders.
· Maintain good health through regular exercise, proper nutrition, not smoking, and following prescribed treatment for any other health conditions you may have. Exercise has been proven to be an effective method of preventing back and neck pain.
If you do similar work or activities at home, be sure to apply these principles there as well to eliminate any cumulative effect of repetitive motions.

What kinds of injuries occur in the office?

Most problems that occur in the office are caused by physical stress, such as prolonged awkward positions, repetitive motions, and overuse. These injuries can cause stress and strain on muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, blood vessels, or spinal discs. Symptoms include fatigue and hand, wrist, arm, shoulder, neck, or back pain. You may also be at risk for conditions such as tendinopathy and bursitis, which are caused by overuse and repetitive motions. Ultimately, physical stress decreases your overall well-being, may cause chronic health problems, and uses up your sick time.
You may be at greater risk for workplace injuries if you have other health conditions, such as arthritis or mental or emotional stress.

Purpose of Office Ergnomics

Injury and illness are common in the workplace and costly to both you and your employer. Not only do they reduce your quality of life, but they also reduce your ability to be efficient and productive. In one study, over half of employees who used computers for at least 15 hours per week in their first week of a new job reported musculoskeletal problems.Most job-related injuries are caused by falls, repetitive movements, awkward postures, reaching, bending over, lifting heavy objects, applying pressure or force, or working with vibrating tools. Office ergonomics can help you be more comfortable at work while reducing stress and injury caused by awkward positions and repetitive tasks.
Office ergonomics focuses on your workstation arrangement-the placement of equipment such as your desk, computer monitor, chair, computer keyboard, mouse, and telephone. An ergonomic evaluation examines:
Your workstation setup, relative to your posture, length of time in a position or doing a particular task, types of movements, or repetition of movements.
Your job surroundings, including the work surface, lighting, noise level, temperature, and humidity.
Your job tools. This includes any device used to perform your job duties, such as a computer mouse or scanning machines.

What is ergonomics?

Ergonomics is the study of how your body interacts with your environment when you perform a task or activity. Ergonomics often involves arranging your environment-including equipment, tools, lighting, and how you do a task-to fit you and the activity you are doing. Office ergonomics focuses on arranging your work environment to fit your needs while you do your job.
When your workstation is set up properly, you may be less likely to have problems such as headaches or eyestrain, possibly reduce neck and back pain, and perhaps prevent conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome that can be related to repetitive activities. Whether or not your workstation is causing physical problems, a workstation that is properly set up can increase your productivity and quality of work life.

Using Computer Doesn't Increase Risk Of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Study Finds

Using a computer at work doesn't increase your chances of developing carpal tunnel syndrome, according to a study published in the June 12 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

"We wanted to do this study because conventional wisdom says that using a computer increases your risk of developing carpal tunnel, but few studies have been done to see how often carpal tunnel actually occurs in computer users," said study author and neurologist J. Clarke Stevens, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
Stevens said most of the studies showing that repetitive motion causes carpal tunnel involve workers in meatpacking plants or other industrial jobs, not computer users.

This study examined 257 employees at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., who used a computer frequently in their jobs. "Many of the computer users in the study had experienced feelings of numbness or 'pins and needles' in their hands, but the percentage who actually met the medical criteria for carpal tunnel syndrome was similar to other estimates of how often carpal tunnel occurs in the general public," Stevens said.

For the study, researchers sent a questionnaire to employees who used computers for much of their jobs, such as secretaries and transcriptionists. They reported using the computer for an average of six hours per day. Of the 257 people studied, 30 percent said they had experienced pins and needles sensations or numbness in their hands.
Those people then completed a questionnaire on carpal tunnel symptoms and a diagram to show where their symptoms occurred to determine whether they met the clinical criteria for carpal tunnel syndrome. Twenty-seven people met the criteria, or 10.5 percent of the original study group.
Stevens said those who had symptoms of numbness or tingling but did not have carpal tunnel had mild symptoms that occurred briefly. Some may have had problems with another nerve in the arm, the ulnar nerve. Carpal tunnel affects the median nerve.
The researchers then tested the nerves of those who met the criteria to see if electrodiagnostic laboratory tests would confirm the diagnosis.

The nerve conduction studies confirmed the diagnosis in nine people, or 3.5 percent of the 257 study participants.
"These percentages are similar to percentages found in other studies looking at how often carpal tunnel occurs in the general population -- not just computer users," Stevens said.
The researchers also found no significant differences between the computer users who had carpal tunnel and those who did not.

"They had similar occupations, number of years using the computer and number of hours using the computer during the day," Stevens said. "So there were no differences that might point to computer use as a factor in causing carpal tunnel." Stevens said the results shouldn't be interpreted to mean that the repetitive motions involved in using a computer can never lead to problems for people.

"There are a lot of aches and pains associated with using a computer," he said. "We just found that, at least in this group, frequent computer use doesn't seem to cause carpal tunnel syndrome." Additional studies with large groups of people should be done to see if these results can be confirmed, Stevens said.

Organizations that can help with work related illnesses

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), U.S. Department of Labor
200 Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20210
Phone:
(202) 693-19991-800-321-OSHA (1-800-321-6742)
TDD:
1-877-889-5627
Web Address:
http://www.osha.gov

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) provides information on hazards at the workplace and worker safety.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Suite 715-H
Washington, DC 20201
Phone:
1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674)
Fax:
(513) 533-8573
Web Address:
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducts research and makes recommendations for the prevention of work-related injuries and illnesses. NIOSH also provides information to the public.

American Physical Therapy Association
1111 North Fairfax Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone:
1-800-999-2782(703) 684-2782
Fax:
(703) 684-7343
Web Address:
http://www.apta.org

The American Physical Therapy Association provides information and education to the public about physical therapy and how it is used to treat certain conditions.

What is carpal tunnel syndrome?

Carpus is a word derived from the Greek word "karpos" which means "wrist." The wrist is surrounded by a band of fibrous tissue which normally functions as a support for the joint. The tight space between this fibrous band and the wrist bone is called the carpal tunnel. The median nerve passes through the carpal tunnel to receive sensations from the thumb, index, and middle fingers of the hand. Any condition that causes swelling or a change in position of the tissue within the carpal tunnel can squeeze and irritate the median nerve. Irritation of the median nerve in this manner causes tingling and numbness of the thumb, index, and the middle fingers, a condition known as "carpal tunnel syndrome."

Key points to preventing CTS

Many health conditions and diseases make you more likely to get carpal tunnel symptoms. But if you exercise, maintain a healthy weight, control other health conditions such as arthritis and diabetes, and avoid smoking, you can help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.
Arranging your activity and work space using ergonomic guidelines can help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. Office ergonomics focuses on how a workstation is set up, including the placement of your desk, computer monitor, paperwork, chair, and associated tools, such as a computer keyboard and mouse. The same ideas can help you arrange your position for other daily activities.
Proper body mechanics are key to preventing carpal tunnel syndrome.
Evaluate your daily routine for activities that increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.
Take frequent breaks from activities to rest, stretch, change positions, or alternate with another activity.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Overview

Carpal tunnel is a disease of the hand characterized by numbness, tingling, pain, and weakness. The disease typically affects the thumb, index, and middle fingers and is often particularly troublesome at night. A major nerve, specifically the median nerve, travels down the arm and enters the hand through the carpal tunnel, which is located in the central part of the wrist. In people with carpal tunnel syndrome, pressure in the carpal tunnel is higher than in unaffected people, and median nerve irritation occurs.

Many conditions can cause increased pressure within the carpal tunnel and lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. Carpal tunnel syndrome was first described with broken wrists. A broken wrist can cause bleeding and swelling within the carpal tunnel leading to increased pressure within the carpal tunnel. Most people with carpal tunnel syndrome have no identifiable cause. It affects almost 5% of the population and is most common in middle-aged women. Carpal tunnel syndrome is diagnosed based on the complaints of the individual combined with physical tests and often electrical studies. No single test is definitive for diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome. Instead, the person's complaints and test findings together lead to its diagnosis.

How Is It Diagnosed and Treated?

Did you ever wake up and your hand is still asleep — all numb and giving you pins and needles? That's what it can feel like to have CTS. One way to tell if you have CTS is to check if your pinky is also numb. It won't be in a person with CTS. A doctor who suspects CTS will listen to the person's symptoms and then do a wrist examination. By tapping on the person's wrists, the doctor is often able to tell whether the problem is CTS.

A brace or splint can help mild cases of CTS. It is usually worn at night and keeps a person's wrists from bending. Keeping the wrist straight opens the carpal tunnel so the nerve has as much room as possible. Resting the wrist will allow the swollen tendons to shrink. Medicines like ibuprofen can also help reduce the swelling.

In more severe cases, your doctor may recommend cortisone to reduce inflammation and swelling in the carpal tunnel. This medicine is given by a shot, or injection. When the symptoms of CTS have improved, the doctor may suggest the person do wrist exercises and make changes that can prevent further problems, such as repositioning the computer and keyboard.

If none of these treatments help, the person may need surgery to release the pressure on the median nerve. This surgery takes less than an hour and usually doesn't require a stay overnight in the hospital. Very few people are permanently injured by CTS. Most can get better and take steps to prevent the symptoms from returning.

· Many health conditions and diseases make you more likely to get carpal tunnel symptoms. But if you exercise, maintain a healthy weight, control other health conditions such as arthritis and diabetes, and avoid smoking, you can help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.
· Arranging your activity and work space using ergonomic guidelines can help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. Office ergonomics focuses on how a workstation is set up, including the placement of your desk, computer monitor, paperwork, chair, and associated tools, such as a computer keyboard and mouse. The same ideas can help you arrange your position for other daily activities.
· Proper body mechanics are key to preventing carpal tunnel syndrome.
· Evaluate your daily routine for activities that increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.
· Take frequent breaks from activities to rest, stretch, change positions, or alternate with another activity.

Simple steps is all it takes

If you spend a lot of time doing activities that involve forceful or repetitive finger or wrist movement or use of vibrating equipment, you have an increased risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). These activities can include driving, using a keyboard, working with small instruments, knitting, or using a sander. You can reduce your risk, as well as any hand pain or weakness you may already have, by taking a few simple steps. In some of my older posts I mention many exercises that are meant to prevent CTS.