JOINT HEALTH
Take active measures to help prevent wrist injuries.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, musculoskeletal disorders, which include repetitive strain injuries, are the leading occupational illness in the US. These injuries accounted for almost one-third of all workplace injuries and illnesses that required time away from the job in 2010.
Repetitive stress can cause a number of wrist injuries including tendonitis and carpal tunnel syndrome.
While these injuries are especially common with office workers, or people who spend long amounts of time at their desks, anyone who uses their hands for continuous and repetitive work can be at risk for a wrist injury. Common symptoms of wrist injuries include pain in the wrist, hand, and arm.
Prevention is always the best option, and in many cases of repetitive strain injuries, it is one of the only options. The best solution is to avoid overusing your hands, and avoiding positions that are hard on your wrists.
To help reduce your chances of developing a wrist injury, here are some things that you can do.
Stay Strong
By strengthening your wrist, arm, hand, and finger muscles, you will be less likely to overwork them. Since it is harder to overuse something that is normally worked hard, a good defense against wrist injury is to continually work on strengthening your muscles.
Take Breaks
Your body was not designed to stay in one position for extended periods of time. Take frequent breaks to stretch your muscles and improve circulation. Stretching your joints through their full range of motion restores the blood flow and stimulates fluid movement within your joints. This helps to properly lubricate your joints, and keep things healthy and happy. Try to take a 10-minute break every hour for continuous work.
Pay Attention to the Warning Signs
Many people ignore the warning signs that they have overworked their wrists, and end up with the inability to properly use them. Instead of ignoring pains or weakness in your wrists, take this as a sign to seek medical attention before things get worse. Your doctor might prescribe physical therapy to help strengthen your wrist muscles.
Maintain Correct Posture
Maintaining correct posture is an important part of injury prevention. Having your wrist bent too far while typing will strain the wrist. The placement of your monitor is another important consideration. If your neck is turned slightly instead of looking straight ahead, you may create a restriction at your neck joints, impeding circulation to your wrists. And avoid raising the back of the keyboard. While some keyboards come with legs to enable a better view of the keys, this can cause you to extend your wrists while you type, increasing the risk of injury.
It’s also important to pay attention to the early warning signs of wrist injury and to take action to prevent the injuries from becoming worse. By being aware of the risk of injury, you can take measures to combat repetitive strain injuries, before it’s too late.
For more information on wrist injury prevention, visit Blackstone Orthopedics today. It’s important to seek treatment at the first signs of trouble. If you or your loved one has sustained a wrist injury, contact Blackstone Orthopedics in Rhode Island and Massachusetts today.
