Your eyes are tired. Your wrists hurt. Your neck muscles are all knotted up. Are these freebies of the computer age or your six-digit salary? As you spend hours hunched over your PC, giving the final touches to your boss?s presentation to the bankers, you may wish these aches and pains away. But they come back with names like repetitive stress injuries (RSI) and musculoskeletal injuries ? occupational health hazards for the uninitiated.
?The commonest form of RSI is carpel tunnel syndrome ? the nerve running between the joints and the ligaments on the wrist is compressed, leading to swelling of the tendons. Over a period of time, the pain spreads to the entire arm. Then there are neck and back pains, slip discs, all caused by bad postures like slouching over the computer or punching the keys on your laptop,? says Dr Bipin Walia, neurologist, Max Healthcare.
Overuse or misuse of muscles, tendons and nerves are the root cause of these disorders. RSIs can result from any combination of factors like repetitive tasks, awkward or fixed posture (working in an awkward position or holding the same position for a long time), fast pace of work, and long duration of tasks with insufficient and inadequate rest breaks.
Symptoms include pain and swelling, numbness and tingling (hands falling asleep), loss of strength and reduced range of motion. These symptoms may appear in any order, and at any stage in the development of the injury. Symptoms may not occur immediately after work. In fact they could show up much later.
Aggravated by our sedentary lifestyles and helped by technology-based jobs, these injuries can turn into career-threatening diseases, even if they are not life-threatening ones. Agrees Naresh Malhotra, who works in a legal firm, ?I had been suffering from pain in my wrists on and off for the last two years. It was only when my doctor warned me that I could end up not being able to use my hands that I realised the seriousness of the problem.?
In the US, carpel tunnel syndrome has left many workers disabled, with companies flooded with compensation claims. According to Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the US, RSI represents 62% of all work compensation claims and results in nearly $15-20 billion in lost work time. While there is no such comparable data for India, a study on IT professionals published in the Indian Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine found 93% of respondents suffering from computer-related health problems.
More than 77% of the respondents had musculoskeletal problems caused by using inappropriate ergonomics. Given that IT professionals are among the first to fall prey to RSI, companies in this sector are trying to introduce a healthy work environment. Employees spend most of their days at their workstations, which makes it important to provide them with a healthy environment.
Says Shantanu Banerjee, HR director, Xansa India, ?Workstations and seating are designed to help employees maintain proper posture and prevent repetitive stress injuries. These include workstation designs, comfortable chairs, wrist support for laptops and anti-glare screens. All our chairs conform to health and safety norms, to prevent long-term injuries. Also, employees using laptops are provided with customised laptop holders to avoid stress on the eyes and shoulders.?
Manufacturers in the computing products business are responding to the needs of the market. Better wrist and arm alignment, keys closer to the user?s fingers, rubber bumpers, alternative keyboard designs ? top-notch companies and assemblers alike are incorporating these elements to ensure more ergonomic choices are available. Microsoft this month launched its Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000, with a curvy keyboard. ?We are excited about delivering this product. It should help make the time our customers spend on their computers more comfortable,? Dan Odell, user researcher and ergonomist, Hardware Group, Microsoft, said at the launch. Then there is Logitech?s laptop stands ? Alto Express and Alto Connect, priced at Rs 9,995. Again, the SmartGlove provides wrist protection while using the computer keyboard and mouse. However, the comparatively higher price bands for such products could sway users towards cheaper and not-too-safe ones.
But think of when you might have to cut short your working life and perhaps the price might not matter.