European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 16, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse The alarming Rise in repetitive stress injuries by Sally Squires the Washington Post it begins innocently enough a sore wrist a tingling hand a numb Finger. Sometimes it takes months or even years to develop. But it can also sideline a worker for several weeks. Known As cumulative trauma disorder the condition afflicts people engaged in repetitive manual tasks. Once limited largely to Assembly line workers it is now Felling White Collar workers in alarming numbers. Cumulative trauma disorder is one of the leading causes of Job related illness in the United states according to the Bureau of labor statistics. About one in 500 american workers suffers from the disability which causes damage to the hands wrists or forearms. The disorder has become so common that it now accounts for half of the 284,000 workplace illnesses reported in 1989, according to the bus. I lie increased incidence attributed partly to greater awareness and better detection is of growing concern to employers labor unions workers and physicians. Quot it has become a tremendous problem Quot said James w. Strickland president of the american society for surgery of the hand. Experts say that when the disorder is not treated promptly damage can be permanent doctors say they still Don t understand which workers Are susceptible to cumulative trauma or Why. Many experts believe that the rising incidence is largely due to the growing number of workers a from airline reservation clerks to retailers a who regularly spend hours pounding on computer keyboards. A clerk who types 60 words a minute can touch the keys 18,000 times in a Busy hour said David Thompson professor emeritus of Industrial engineering at Stanford University. In six hours that can mean As Many As 108,000 key strokes. Thompson said studies show that the average typist uses about 8 ounces of Force to depress each key. That adds up to 50.000 pounds or 25 tons pressed through the fingertips during a Day of in pm tie said. Technological improvements also add to the Strain according to Laura Welch director of the division of occupational and environmental Medicine at George Washington University medical Center. Computer cursors unlike manual typewriters Advance automatically to the next line. The typist does no to have to change hand position and grasp a return lever. The result is greater elfin Henry a and the potential for More Strain on hands and Aims in addition because Many jobs have become . Employees a a Likely to spend their workday i in taped in one k. Of u r 11 sin switching duties every a nuts office workers an n t Ihu Only ones at ask. 1 Luck a v Vii Tui Courtot 4 i of , in list developed Pic Ais of carpal Tunnel syndrome a the most i. My inn a in of cumulative trauma disorder a a year i. Alter 1 i years of dining a Iive Axle truck without i r 100,000 Miles annually. Quot at lust my fingers kind of tingled Quot said Courtot whose left hand grips the steering wheel while his right works the gear shift. The problem progressed to where Courtot said his hands Hurt a virtually All the he is to have surgery on both wrists. Others who have been diagnosed with repetitive injuries include musicians tailors meat packers and journalists Kathy Sizemore 31, an editor in news Day a business Section first developed an aching in her hands in 1989. After several months her condition worsened until she finally experienced a Sharp throbbing pain that shot up her arms to her shoulders. Among the problems doctors diagnosed were damaged nerves in Sizemore s wrist Elbow and shoulder and tendinitis in her hands. She went on disability for six weeks during which time she wore splints and was treated with anti inflammatory drugs. She returned to work then was sidelined for another two weeks during a flare up. While treatment has helped Sizemore still can t perform Many simple daily tasks like cooking driving a car or opening a door. Quot i once got stuck in a bathroom because i turn the Knob Quot she said. Cumulative trauma disorder is also known by several other names most commonly repetitive stress syndrome and repetitive stress injury. It s Quot a rag bag of terms Quot said Barry Simmons chief of hand surgery sen ices at Brigham and women a Hospital in Boston the Constellation of ailments includes tendinitis a painful inflammation of tendons to the hand Picon Kylitis Quot Tennis Elbow Quot de query ainu a syndrome an inflammation of the thumb Tendon and carpal Tunnel syndrome a compression of the main nerve to the hand. The incidence of cases of the disorder has mushroomed so quickly that both diagnosis and treatment Are sometimes difficult. In addition symptoms can vary widely among patients treatment for carpal Tunnel or any other form of cumulative trauma disorder begins with rest. Several medications a including aspirin ibuprofen and diuretics a can reduce swelling. Other treatment includes ultrasound therapy and paraffin Wax treatments. Physical therapy is also used to help strengthen Muscles and increase flexibility. Cortisone injections can sometimes help control inflammation but Are Only effective in a Small number of cases and cannot be repeated More than twice because of harmful Side effects. The last resort is surgery. Doctors make a Small incision in the Palm and snip the transverse carpal ligament. The operation takes 30 to 60 minutes and is performed under local anaesthesia. The ligament heals in about two months but grows Back in a Limp position that provides about 25 percent More space or the median nerve. Doctors and physical therapists disagree about ways of preventing cumulative trauma disorder. Some expo its believe that office workers a like athletes a can Benefit t of conditioning exercises to increase the strength and flexibility of their fingers wrists and arms. Brief regular Breaks from work also Leif adjustable properly designed office furniture chairs terminals and computer keyboards Finger movements sri controlled by Muscles in the forearm end transferred by Long tendons in the top and Bottom of the hand. The tendons nerves and blood vessels All pass through a Tunnel in the wrist made of Bone end ligament called the carpal Tunnel source of or Jim Tonj a Nott it Macoit a Tiff qlmdk9i shut of amp ton cd baggy army says its not a problem \ w working your Way to pain repetitive motion injuries May occur when the seme movement is done Over end Over Tor Tong time one of the most common is Carpel Tunnel syndrome. Tendons become inflamed end swollen compressing a key nerve that also runs through the narrow carpal Tunnel. The result is pain numbness end tingling in the first three Finger s and the base of the thumb. by Bob Ziring coping with the a occupational disease of the �?T90s�?T by Jane e. Brody the new York times experts say hundreds of thousands of office workers Are being disabled each year in an epidemic of motion related damage to the hands and arms that is costing the nation Many billions of dollars annually. The problem is expected to Worsen in the current recession As businesses demand greater output from lower employees and workers ignore symptoms for fear of losing their jobs. Computer operators spend Many hours in the same position doing the same task without Breaks or variation giving no time Tor stressed tissues to recover. Over time this behaviour can induce crippling changes m the sensitive tissues of the wrist and hand. People with the disorders which can sometimes be permanent can find themselves unemployable or forced to change careers. Favorite sports activities housework carrying groceries or even holding a Coffee cup May become difficult or impossibly painful. The disorders have Many names a repetitive stress or repetitive motion injuries cumulative trauma disorders of which carpal Tunnel syndrome is one and most recently work related Tuscul skeletal disorders the designation of the world health organization. But it All boils Down to damage caused principally to tissues within the hand and Arm by seemingly innocent actions that Are repeated perhaps thousands of times each work Day like typing on a computer cutting meat or poultry or etching Glass. Some experts Call it an overuse syndrome the biological equivalent of Metal fatigue. Quot states report that 30 to 40 percent of Workman s a. Dec by Crystal Laureano staff writer reports linking computers to repetitive stress injuries do not alarm army safety officials. Bob Braun the us army Europe safety director said army evaluation of of labor department injury statistics has not raised red flags Quot we searched that data base and can to find a significant numbers to indicate that we have a problem you have to spend a lot of time on a computer without Breaks to cause injury a he said Back pain or eyestrain is a More common Compla it from office workers Quot he said. Quot sometimes it s the tight i he said. Quot they would like to be by a wince but when you have it the computer screen by a wine you get a lot of Glare Quot repetitive stress injuries Are common among tradesmen or those who use a screwdriver or other to perform a limited repetitive motion he noted. Ergonomics today s Buzz word for making tools 11 Quot worker Are beginning to make a Mark in the military. Quot it s slowly coming about Quot Braun said. Quot we look at specific areas and Institute some changes but it has t turned Over to where every tool you buy is ergonomically designed a some Are like padded handles on pliers. There have been some Subtle one of those subtleties was the replacement of four legged office chairs with More stable five legged chairs. The real focus in army safety program is Quot human error Accident reduction Quot Braun said. Quot the majority of our accidents Are not a result of equipment or design deficiencies Quot he said. Quot its usually the human element within that is operating government employees overseas have the same protections and rights under the occupational health and safety act As their counterparts in the United states Braun said Osha standards have been incorporated Mio army Force and Navy safety standards say representatives from the senders. An executive order mandates that All Federal agencies adhere to Osha requirements. The Only exceptions to those is apply to Quot military unique workplaces or conditions Quot said Braun local National employees Are also protected by Host nation safety Laws. Quot for the most part the Rule is that to comply with the most stringent of either Osha or Host nation requirements Quot he said. All department of defense employees military and civilian have the right to work in a Safe environment and to Lodge complaints about unsafe conditions without fear of reprisal he said. Quot in every Usa eur workplace there is a requirement for an Osha poster to be posted Quot said Braun Quot that poster tells the Points of Contact at Community level and at the higher Levels of command. Employer can tie an unsafe or unhealthful condition report a they can he anonymously or with their name on it and we have to t a a a a a action on it and provide a written Ripon Estl n or it a week to that complaint Quot he said. Safety representatives also have a . To conduct safety and occupational Heairn ,.ir up fur a employees compensation claims now result from Tuscul skeletal disorders Quot said or. Roger Stephens Dimi Lor of the office of ergonomics at the occupational safety and i administration in Washington. He predicted that without Dian Ulic i hang. M equipment design and work Lipits these problems would soon account for half of every Dollar spent on such claims while injuries to the Back remain the nation s most costly Job rela cd Hazard damage to the wrist and hands to now the fastest growing category of worker s compensation claims. The american Academy of orthopaedic surgeons estimated in 1984 that the problem Cost the nation More than $27 billion a year in lost wages and medical care an amount Attiat could Well have doubled by now since there has been More than a doubling in reported cases or. Marvin j. Damoff a psychologist who is the director of the Center Lor ergonomic research at Miami University in Oxford Ohio has called repetitive stress injury the Quot occupational disease of the 90s&Quot similar to the Asbestos crisis of the 1980s. New companies Tkavc been formed to help workers Cope. There Are also several hand climes springing up in hospitals around the country that try to rehabilitate injured workers. At one the Miller health care Institute at St Luke a Roosevelt medical Center in new York 53 White Collar workers with severe injuries to their wrists and hands Are being treated with rest exercises to strengthen stretch and relax structures in the arms and hands and splints worn at night to keep the wrists straight. They were videotaped while working and taught new techniques to reduce the stress on their hands and wrists. And their work stations were adjusted to suit then individual needs. Quot those with problems that Are caught Early can expect Continuo a on it to 16 workplace says Bruun. But employees also ear initiate an inspection by filing a complaint. Safety inspectors look Lor hazardous chemicals occupational hazards such As extreme sound Levels or Eye hazards general housekeeping storage of Flar Mables and technical violations concerning machinery Quot a lol of workers do Call the unit safely representatives to come and look at Someth q said. Quot it is usually environment Coli editions it Quot 1 i1 r or i or noise or maybe Thi a done to it e Itne b 3 to a it j i temperature Quot if conditions Are found it ii o a a me my a Ltd y officials shut or an a v. A 1 a com non is a but to it a it r. A or a a a a a 1 i 11, i is o ii i be 1 a i thu Oerl i i pc a 1. A a a i yet i i ,5 the a Quot a a. 1 i ale. I a. Brume sad Quot there s a lot it i f a i. A i a i?,.ili n. I1 s and la i s the major a .1 i a a t e s Iid a i j i. In i i1 s i. 1. A a 1 a up a Hia r i ins ire s or mrp Mon six i. A Page 14 the stars and stripes tuesday e 1992 the stars and stripes Page 15
