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I'm chiming in late, but I felt I had to! I work as a technical
writer/editor for an ergonomics consulting firm, and after working on
several 300+ page manuals about it (and loads of other documents), I
know carpal tunnel and other musculoskeletal disorders (MSD, CTD, RSI,
etc.) are real. They're caused by a combination of factors -- posture,
force, frequency, and duration. They develop over time (doing something
the "wrong" way just a few times generally doesn't cause a problem).
Just a few of the risk factors are:
- wrists/hands not kept in line with the forearms
- when sitting, not maintaining 90-degree angles with arms, legs
- wrist twisting motions, or having them turned up, down, or sideways
for periods of time
- shoulders hunched/shrugged (often happens when keying or mousing on a
tabletop or keyboard support that's too high, not allowing the 90-degree
arm angle)
- craning the neck up, down, sideways
- twisting the body
- reaching above shoulders
- pressing, pinching, pushing, pulling with force
Ergonomics is aimed at preventing these high-risk behaviors so that you
do not develop problems like carpal tunnel as a result. There's lots of
info out there about all the specifics (there are actually specific
measurements to use as guidelines when setting up your workstation).
The guidelines really do make a difference. For computer users like us,
I think the most important thing is to maintain that 90-degree angle
with the arms and legs. If your work surface is too high, adjust your
chair. Then, if your feet can't rest to form a 90-degree angle, add a
footrest. Make sure your head and neck are held in a neutral position,
not angled up or down, and that your monitor is directly in front of you
and about an arm's length away. Yes, some of us are, by nature, more
prone to developing problems, but you can do alot to try to prevent
them. If you do develop them, rest/avoiding the activities that cause
them/frequent breaks will help, and so will physical therapy (but
physical therapy only helps once you've already got a problem!). And,
I've heard (not from any ergonomist) that vitamin B6 and B12 can help
with the symptoms too. Can't hurt to try them.
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