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The Woes of the Workplace Computer

© Dr. David L. Phillips

If you are a computer user, and I suspect that you are or you'd probably not be reading this, you are susceptible to numerous musculoskeletal injuries, aches and pains. Repetitive strains can result from prolonged sitting, staring, typing, mousing and other computer-related activities. These activities and the physical problems that result from them have become the bane of employers and employees worldwide. More and more even casual home computer users are complaining of trouble in their backs, necks, shoulders, arms and wrists from hours of surfing, chatting and e-mailing.

Five years ago, the latest statistic available from the U.S. Census Bureau, was that 40% of households had a computer and that 92 million American adults used one. I'm sure that by today, those figures would have doubled. Well over half of all working persons hold jobs involving computers. The physical impact of all this sedentary activity is enormous. Many studies have attempted to illustrate the various complications arising from the effects on the human frame of this sitting and of the unnatural postures required to work at computer terminal.

The latest study, reported in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine 2002:41(4), 221-235, tracked 600 newly hired people in occupations that required the use of computers at least 15 hours per week. These volunteers were required to keep diaries of their job activities, the numbers of hours spent on computers, and any symptoms of neck, back, shoulder, arm or hand pain that they experienced. The study went for 3 years and resulted in some surprising findings:

1. Half of all people suffered musculoskeletal pains in the first year in their new jobs.
2. Almost 33% experienced a new bout of neck or shoulder symptoms.
3. 25% suffered an onset of new pains in their hands or arms.
4. Astonishingly, carpal tunnel syndrome, the problem that gets the most press, was one of the least likely conditions to develop in this study. Less than 1% of people reported developing the symptoms of CTS.
5. Women and workers over 30 years of age were the most likely to experience computer related problems in this study.

In my own practice, I see many work related spinal and extremity injuries, some from sports, some from industrial accidents, some from mishaps around the home, but many from repetitive strains such as those illustrated in this study, so it's not hard to believe the conclusions. I regularly treat pains, aches and stiffness in necks, upper backs, shoulders and arms in both men and women as well as paraesthesias such as burning, tingling and numbness from excessive computer use, or moderate use at a poorly designed workstation.

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