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Google Staff MD on Carpal Tunnel & RSI
bariswheel writes "Every older and some younger Slashdotters have been subject to that tingling feeling in your wrist after countless hours of hacking, cracking, or playing CS. This Google Blog, posted by the Staff MD addresses this serious symptom that could potentially lead to "compression of the nerve which can cause numbness or tingling and eventually weakness if the nerve is damaged severely." Didn't think hard work would hurt anybody right?"
I use my hands/wrist/forearms for a lot of things. I play bass, program for a living, play piano & enjoy hours of computer games. On top of that, I spent my youth working on a farm doing repetitive chores like picking up rocks or bails of hay.
I've always been concerned about the state of my wrists especially since they're so vital to my livelihood. But what I've found is that the only time I've experienced fatigue or pain in them is when I haven't used them to intensively work out. I now visit the gym twice a week and I believe that doing proper exercises builds strength and endurance in them to overcome what effects poor posture at work might have on them.
I'm not in any way a doctor but it's been my experience that when I was in college with no time to work out (and no job to force me to use them), I experienced discomfort from programming 12+ hours at the end of semesters. Now, I never even notice a 12+ crunch between work and school.
I also have a pair of hand grips at both my office and home where if I'm watching television or waiting for a compile to complete, I'll put in a few repetitions. I just see this as "flossing your teeth" for programmers. It's not something you have to do but you should do it because your hands really are worth a lot to you.
I don't take this issue lightly after I saw my friend go through it at the young age of 22. He had to wear a sort of headband thing with a reflective dot on it to move his mouse around on his machine. Unbelievably, he even became quite good at play Star Wars Galaxies online with it on.
My work here is dung.
Then I bought a Microsoft Natural Keyboard. I don't much like MS software, but their hardware is first-rate. I can (and do) sit in front of my computer and write code for hours on end, with no problems. I even bring on with me on contract jobs.
I have a couple of extra, just in case this one croaks. I haven't noticed the natural keyboard in stores lately.
No matter where you go... there you are.
I was starting to get the tingling in the nerves of my right hand recently at 25 - and I've spent nearly every day, at least 12 hours, on the keyboard since highschool. Sometimes I'll go a few months, solid, in front of the screen 16/7. At first I thought it was just age and wear and tear on my wrists, but then I noticed something - the new high-back executive chair I bought sat lower, at its maximum height, than my previous chair.
So I bought a new chair that sat higher with higher armrests, and haven't had even a whisper of a problem since. I'm convinced the problem is largely one of ergonomics and posture.
--Ryvar
Although Carpel Tunnel Syndrome makes the news the most, the most common hand problems that computer users experience is tendonitis. Tendonitis is painful, but it doesn't damage nerves.
What evidence there is points to the mouse as the source of computer-related hand problems, not the keyboard. I remember hearing a lot about people getting computer-related hand problems in the early 90's, around the time Windows 3.1 came out and the mouse became mainstream.
I tend to have hand trouble in the spring when I start riding my bike, and that demands a hand position different from anything I do all winter.
I've had times when my tendonitis was so bad that I thought I'd have to change careers, but I found that push-ups were an effective treatment for me. Push-ups are great because they are a functional exercise that works the whole upper body -- they build up the big muscles in your chest as well as the little muscles in your wrist. I love lifting weights, but you can do push-ups at home without any equipment or gym memberships.
Note that every motion you do involves a complete 'chain' that leads back to your center of gravity -- if you push a key on a computer, it's only an ounce or two of force, but it's ultimately backed up by your whole mass. Your big muscles help your little muscles do their work and vice versa...