Return-Path: Received: from u.ergo.cs.cmu.edu by K.GP.CS.CMU.EDU id aa16603; 14 Aug 91 12:23:07 EDT Received: from u.ergo.cs.cmu.edu by U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU id aa01214; 14 Aug 91 12:22:11 EDT To: meo+@CS.CMU.EDU, bcp+@CS.CMU.EDU, bovik@CS.CMU.EDU Reply-to: Tim Freeman Subject: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Date: Wed, 14 Aug 91 12:22:06 -0400 Message-ID: <1212.682186926@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU> From: Timothy_Freeman@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU Here's some advice that recently went by on sci.med about preventing it: From: bsg10532@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Ben Gerber) Newsgroups: sci.med Subject: Re: Preventing Carpel Tunnel Syndrome Date: 9 Aug 91 01:18:35 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana RMC100@psuvm.psu.edu (Randy Carraghan) writes: >Anyone know of any exercises (or other techniques) for preventing carpel >tunnel syndrome? As a programmer, less typing is not really an option, but >I'll try any other suggestions. Thanks in advance... There is an interesting article published in Computing Times, Indana University (July-August, 1990) entitled, "Avoiding Carpal Tunnel Syndrome." It was also reprinted in Computing News, York University, Canada (May-June, 1991). The following are quotes from the article: "Computer keyboard users can take several steps to lower their chances of developing CTS. Some of these centre around the configuration of the workplace, or "ergonomics." Others have to do with human factors. Proper seating is crucial to good ergonomics. The height of your seat and the position of your backrest should be adjustable. The chair should be on wheels so you can move it easily. Arm rests on the chair, though optional, are often helpful." [At this point suggestions are made for table height for computer, wrist angle, elbow angle, waist angle, and feet. This part is detailed in describing the best geometric configuration of proper seating.] "You need very little recovery time between keystrokes to cool and lubricate the flexor tendons. If you type constantly, however, the need for recovery builds. Further, working with your hands bent upward at the wrists or frequently bending your wrists sideways heightens the friction within the carpal tunnel. It takes longer to recover from these motions. Working under stress (deadline pressure, anger, or other anxiety) can make matters even worse. Many studies recommend a 10-15 minute break each hour to give yourself the recovery time you need. This needn't be a break from productive activities - just a break from your keyboard. Exercise can help, too. Try the following: Make tight fists, hold for one second, then stretch your fingers out wide and hold for five seconds. Repeat several times. With arms outstretched in front of you, raise and lower your hands several times. Rotate your hands ten times (make circles in the air with the fingertips). Variety is the key. CTS occurs most frequently in workers whose motions are not only repetitious but are kept up for hours at a time. If you use a keyboard, structure your workdays to include a mix of activities each hour. For example, instead of typing all morning and filing all afternoon, mix typing and filing throughout the day." -- Ben Gerber : "To live is like to love - (bsg10532@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu) : all reason is against it, University of Illinois : and all healthy instinct for it." But not for long... : - Samuel Butler From: toad@cellar.UUCP (Tony Shepps) Newsgroups: sci.med Subject: Re: Preventing Carpel Tunnel Syndrome Date: 10 Aug 91 06:51:03 GMT Organization: The Cellar BBS and public access system RMC100@psuvm.psu.edu (Randy Carraghan) writes: > Anyone know of any exercises (or other techniques) for preventing carpel > tunnel syndrome? As a programmer, less typing is not really an option, but > I'll try any other suggestions. Thanks in advance... I had a bit of a scare recently when I started to get a bit of numbness in the last two fingers of my hand, and some pain in my forearm. This turned out to be related to the ulnar nerve, not the carpal tunnel at all. I was on anti-inflammatory for a while, but the real answer to the problem has been to change the workplace, just a little bit. The first thing I did was to go out and buy a different keyboard. The keyboard provided at work was sort of old, and took heavy key pressure to operate. Combine that with some job stress, the desire to type at amazingly fast speeds, and 14-hour-a-day keyboard usage, and it's a recipe for disaster. Oh, and I also changed the angle at which the keyboard sits, just a little bit. I noticed that I had been "reaching" for the keyboard. No good. Then my doctor mentioned, almost as an aside, that I might try putting an armband around my arm, about one inch down from the elbow. This worked *brilliantly*. From the first moment I used it I knew it was the cure. Somehow the band changes the way the arm muscles work just a little bit -- which changes the kinds of pressure the muscle puts on the nerve. I'm at the point now where I don't even need that, but it's been 4 months since the problem began. I would advise every programmer or typist: take a long look at the way you work. If your wrists are at any kind of angle, change the location or the angle of the keyboard. If you pound the keys when you type, train yourself not to. If you force yourself to speed-type, train yourself not to. A steady rate of keying gets the job done a lot faster than sudden bursts of speed anyway. I've given this advice to a few people at work; one of them stopped having wrist pain, another noticed a change in back pain. Don't wait until carpal tunnel or ulnar nerve problems begin to take action. I thought I could do that, but it hit me very suddenly. One day I was breezing along, the next day I could barely type. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Tony Shepps toad@cellar.UUCP (...{tredysvr|uunet}!cellar!toad) - - The Cellar BBS +1 215 336 9503 Reliable hardware, responsible sysops, - - and lion noise is never a problem. ( *GROWL!* ) (eeep!) NO CARRIER From: cash@convex.com (Peter Cash) Newsgroups: sci.med Subject: Re: Preventing Carpel Tunnel Syndrome Date: 12 Aug 91 15:38:03 GMT Organization: The Instrumentality Nntp-Posting-Host: muse.convex.com In article toad@cellar.UUCP (Tony Shepps) writes: >RMC100@psuvm.psu.edu (Randy Carraghan) writes: >> Anyone know of any exercises (or other techniques) for preventing carpel >> tunnel syndrome? As a programmer, less typing is not really an option, but ... >I would advise every programmer or typist: take a long look at the way you >work. If your wrists are at any kind of angle, change the location or the >angle of the keyboard. If you pound the keys when you type, train yourself >not to. If you force yourself to speed-type, train yourself not to. A >steady rate of keying gets the job done a lot faster than sudden bursts of >speed anyway. I've given this advice to a few people at work; one of them >stopped having wrist pain, another noticed a change in back pain. Amen! I had an intermittent pain in my left arm for about two years. The pain went from the elbow to the wrist, and was severe at times. I finally figured out that the cause was the _chair_ I was sitting in! I do a lot of typing at work, and the chair had a hard plastic arm-rest. When I switched to a chair with a padded arm-rest, the pain went away immediately. I think that the arm-rest was putting pressure on a nerve. -- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist. | Peter Cash | (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein) |cash@convex.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~