Source: Tom's Guide US | Keywords: ergonomic, health, technology | Themes: Desktop Computers
3. The Doctor Is In
You gadgetheads won’t go away disappointed. But before we can dig into the details of ergonomic hardware (which will be published in another article following this one), we need to start with an expert discussion of software—specifically the soft tissues in your body. I live in the midst of several Intel facilities in the heart of Oregon’s “Silicon Forest.” Not surprisingly, this area is brimming with desk workers prone to computer-related RSIs. A good chiropractor and/or musculoskeletal therapist should have a field day in these parts, and I found one: Dr. Brian Rueben (www.drbrianrueben.com) of Back to Basics Chiropractic Center.
When I came to visit, Dr. Rueben was preparing to perform an upper back adjustment on his office manager, Dawn Laderer, a former restaurant worker who came in with chronic back pain and found so much relief in Dr. Rueben’s treatment methods that she hired on several months later. Having never been to a chiropractor before, I was intrigued by this vibrating, gun-like device he applied to the back of her neck. This started our discussion.
Tom's Guide: What does that device do?
Brian Rueben: Our joints will end up losing their extension motion and become what’s called subluxated or fixated in an abnormal position. It’s not out of place, it just doesn’t move properly. The adjustment is the force applied to that lack of motion. Force is mass times acceleration, so increasing acceleration reduces the need for mass. We’re putting pressure in a direction to restore normal function. It’s a stretch of the joint. The only way to break up bad tissue in the ligament is a high-velocity thrust. You take the joint past its normal barrier. That quick movement stresses the good tissue, but the bad tissue in the joint gets broken up, basically. Then your body replaces that with stronger, more flexible tissue.
TG: Where does the bad tissue come from?
BR: It’s scar tissue, caused by repetitive trauma over time. You develop this bad posture and all this bad tissue in the joints. You end up with nerve irritation, and it’s just this repeated, abnormal force to your body. So you have to force your body to adapt in the way it knows how to do. You have to re-educate it. You have to stress it and make it do that, otherwise it’s going to adapt however it wants to. Doing some stretches, sitting with proper ergonomics. It’s tough. You could design a workstation perfectly, but somebody gets busy and they get out of the posture. You have to do some things during the day to get out of that negative influence. You have to force those joints to run through the full range of motion, or else they’re just going to set in that bad position, getting tighter and tighter, and never really relax. So they don’t fatigue, they just get tighter, like how a lot of people do in their necks and upper back.
TG: Sounds like what I feel happening often in my hips. Even going up stairs, everything feels tight.
BR: Same difference. You lose that spinal curvature when you’re sitting. There’s some pretty cool case-study research on this showing that sedentary work positions are harder on the spine than physical types of jobs, because you’re moving, using the tissues, and causing fluid changes in the joints [when doing physical work]. When you’re sitting all day, you’re body has to adapt to that negative stress.
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I've been using an ergonomic keyboard and mouse pretty much as long as I've been using computers and have never had hand pains, so ergonomic things do work... if you let them. Changing equipment alone often isn't enough to completely offset RSIs. You need to relax your grip on the mouse a bit and improve your posture as well. Keeping your wrists off the desk is a small thing and an easy habit to get into - but it goes a long way.
Great read, lots of good stuff that I've been pondering recently. One interesting point is that while the ideal method of keeping your body in check when long-term computing is to get up every our and stretch. But who really does that, especially on a crunch? Heck, I don't even do that for gaming!
One other thing: for the guitar, I never found my hands hurt from the constant simultaneous movement, and I can play just about every song on Expert level. If anything, that exercise strengthened my left hand significantly, to where it's more adept at certain things than my right hand. My finger movements are even different, and I'm right handed!
That said, just this last week I was diagnosed with overused muscles in my right wrist due to too much gaming and computer time. My right hand is in constant pain from it, and while I have games to review and articles to write (one of which I should be doing now for TG), even pinching hurts because of this overuse. My doctor said I should have my hand in a splinter and my arm in a sling, but there's no typing or gaming in such conditions.
And with the holidays around the corner...well, sometime this week my health will become a bigger priority than my work. And I'm not the only one with such predicaments.
I've also used an MS natural keyboard ever since I bought my first computer. 20 years ago I took a computer class and was using the straight normal keyboard and right away felt my wrists lock up. 5 years after, I buy my first computer and the natural keyboard with it. Good bye pain.
I have Carpol Tunnel Syndrome and pinched nerves in my neck. Definately a good idea to be precautious and take care of yourself. Though I find the prescriptions interesting.
would like to share with you a very unique keyboard from A4Tech
they have some special keyboards with the keys cut into an "A" shape.
It really gives a relaxing feeling when typing, can't describe it.
would be nice to see some of em' in one of tom's reviews.
"Then your body replaces that with stronger, more flexible tissue."
Are you serious?!? That's why atheletes who snap tendons come back and play better than ever (SARCASM!)
I appreciate the section on ergonomics - they're very important and basic measures go a long way to decrease injuries - but I draw the line with chiropractors.
The good "doctor" on his website believes his back manipulation will fix your bacterial ear infection or that back manipulation will fix your asthma. Some of my favourites:
http://www.quackwatch.com/search/w [...] iropractor
Hope that the author got a decent back-rub for linking Brian Rueben's website.
Correction: Leonie Smith and the University of Stellenbosch is in South Africa, not New Zealand. This is also clearly visible from the thesis PDF.
I've got some pretty nasty nerve damage from playing games in terrible positions. Mostly, I use to lean on my elbows. Unfortunately my ulnar nerve has been damaged from years of incorrect resting. Now my fingers don't work so well, I get a lot of strange pains and I can't play computers games or play the guitar anymore.
My advice: Don't rest on your elbows anymore! Armchairs with elbow rest are evil, terrible things. Be careful.
A very good summary of RSI and the dangers of technology. As a long term RSI sufferer (13+ years now) I can vouch for the pain that this condition causes. I literally had to give up my career in CAD/engineering because of an RSI condition. We are literally going to see (are seeing?) an epidemic of RSI conditions break out unless we get the message about the dangers of RSI out there. This article is a step in the right direction. Its about time that the general public is made aware of the dangers of not just computer use, but all high tech gadgetry use/overuse. With the younger generation having been brought up with technology as part of their lives from a very early stage, we could be looking at a wide variety of injuries at a much younger age in the future.
With regards to wrist angle at a keyboard, please refer to my articles on the subject on my RSI website -
Forearm extensors and wrist angle -
http://www.ergomatters.co.uk/blog/ [...] n-and-rsi/
Lateral wrist deviation and RSI -
http://www.ergomatters.co.uk/blog/ [...] e-and-rsi/
Correction: Leonie Smith and the University of Stellenbosch is in South Africa, not New Zealand. This is also clearly visible from the thesis PDF.
Fixed. Thanks for the heads-up!
I've been using all manner of keyboards, from the Acorn Electron all the way up to a standard laptop keyboard and mouse. No problem. No RSI.
I'm in I.T. so do use them ALL the darn time
Try not to give people something to moan about.
I agree with "Anonymous 11/03/2009 2:49 AM"
The section on ergonomics is good and it is important to look at your work environment and its potential affect on your body, but I too draw the line with chiropractors. You can do your own research, but a reasonable summary is the Wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiro [...] ence_basis
It is far from a proven science and not something I would glibly recommend as a solution to the ergonomics problem...
I've been using all manner of keyboards, from the Acorn Electron all the way up to a standard laptop keyboard and mouse. No problem. No RSI.I'm in I.T. so do use them ALL the darn timeTry not to give people something to moan about.
I've known a lot of people with cancer. Never had it myself, though...yet.
I've known a lot of people with cancer. Never had it myself, though...yet.
Just because we've been lucky enough not to have had an ailment outselves doesn't mean it isn't real for others or that we can't take prudent action to avoid contracting the problem in the future.