Repetitive Stress Injuries
We pray with our hands and often communicate with them. We use them to eat, work, and make love. We employ them as marvelously sophisticated instruments of flexibility and strength, and when they are damaged, we anguish - Keith L. Moore
image by: HWN
HWN Suggests
How I Beat Repetitive Stress Injury (RSI) with a Few Minor Adjustments
Early in 2005 the muscles in my forearms started to hurt. In the beginning it was only a slight irritation, but over the course of six months it gradually got worse, until it was so bad I actually thought I would have to switch careers and stop programming altogether. I realized fairly quickly that I had RSI—Repetitive Stress Injury.
After about a month of pain I went to see a doctor. He thought my joints were inflamed, and gave me anti-inflammatory pills (which did not help). A little later I went to see a specialist, and after some tests he concluded that there was nothing wrong with the nerves in my arm. However, he could not answer how I could get rid of the pain.
I…
Articles of Interest
Musicians and Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI) — How to Practice Hard and Stay Healthy
"The major mistake musicians make is that they don’t listen to their bodies and their arms," says Dr. Weiss. "Even if you’re not feeling pain, if your arms feel tired and heavy, take note, and take a break. It’s the same as walking – if I walk for four hours on cobblestone streets, my calves might not exactly hurt, but they’d likely feel tight and overused. That’s when it’s time to stop and take a rest – before the pain starts."
Raising awareness of Repetitive Strain Injuries
Repetitive strain injuries pose a significant occupational health risk in various work environments, but they are largely preventable. As Cleveland Clinic highlights: ‘’Repetitive strain injuries take time to damage to your body, but they can cause serious pain. Make sure you’re listening to your body. If something hurts that normally doesn’t, don’t ignore it. Pain and other minor symptoms are often the first signs of tiny irritation that can lead to more serious repetitive strain injuries later on.’’
Take measures to prevent repetitive strain injuries
Here's a round-up of RSI resources at MIT that focus on prevention. Do yourself a favor and check them out before those twinges turn into trouble.
Resources
5 tips to reduce repetitive stress injuries
“Returning to the same task without time to recover can damage nerves, tendons, muscles, ligaments and joints,” the Texas Department of Insurance says. “Injuries could include shoulder and low back strain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and tendonitis.”
Computer Related Repetitive Strain Injury
As more and more work, education and recreation involves computers, everyone needs to be aware of the hazard of Repetitive Strain Injury to the hands and arms resulting from the use of computer keyboards and mice.
Repetitive Stress Injuries Blog
Encompasses a broad spectrum of RSIs.
Patient
The term repetitive strain injury (RSI) is used to describe a range of painful conditions of the muscles, tendons and other soft tissues. It is mainly caused by repetitive use of part of the body. It is usually related to a task or occupation but leisure activities can also be a cause. Unlike a normal strain following a sudden injury, symptoms of RSI can persist well beyond the time it would take symptoms of a normal strain to ease.
