We hope that you are enjoying your summer. We wanted to present some useful information to prevent injuries when using the computer. We find that many of our patients have lower back, neck or repetitive stress injuries to the arms due to poor ergonomics and not enough movement throughout the day. Although we hope that you are not spending four to six hours a day on the computer, most people do in their current occupations. If so, you are at risk for repetitive or cumulative trauma type injuries. These can include tight, inflamed and painful muscles, joint or nerve irritation. Poor posture- rounded shoulders and a prolonged head forward position causes a constant pressure and tension to tissues. Tight, overworked muscles (and other soft tissues) can become injured in 3 important ways:
- Acute injuries (pulls, tears, or falls)
- Cumulative small tears and overuse (micro-trauma)
- Not getting enough or lack of oxygen (hypoxia)
Each of these factors cause your body to produce dense, tough scar tissue in the affected area. This scar tissue binds up and ties down tissues that need to move freely. As scar tissue builds up, muscles become shorter and weaker, tension on tendons causes tendonitis, and nerves can become trapped resulting in symptoms such as burning, tingling, numbness and aching.
In this diagram you can see that the person using the computer is looking straight ahead. Her computer monitor is adjusted so that she does not have to look down. Her arms are at a 90-degree elbow angle. It is recommended that wrists be at or below elbow height and knees are at or below hip height. Her low back is supported, and her hips and knees are at a 90-degree angle. It is also recommended that when you are not using the keyboard that you take some time to relax your hands in your lap and also take a stretch break. Get up and walk around and move your body. These can go a long way to preventing these types of injuries.
Research shows that regular aerobic exercise and a regular fitness program can help prevent these injuries from occurring. So get out and walk, run, swim, or bike and enjoy the great weather! Please give us a call if you want to know specific exercises for you. We are always here to help. Also, we have a variety of solutions if you do have pain that’s not going away.
