Hands Hurting from Texting, Typing, Video Games?

Here are tips to help your tech injuries

With millions of teenagers and young adults texting, pushing buttons on video game controllers, and tapping on computer keyboards for hours at a time, it’s no wonder they’re complaining of pain in their hands and wrists at a younger age.  Even students in elementary and middle school have reported physical discomfort in their hands, wrists, necks, and backs!

In fact, researchers tracked 476 elementary and middle school children who used computers and played video games. Their study showed that as the children became older they started to complain about physical discomfort in their hands and wrists along with neck and back pain, according to a 2005 Work journal article.

So what can teens and young adults do to prevent discomfort from keyboarding activities? Correct posture and taking frequent breaks from the computer, video games and smart phones can help prevent problems in the hands and wrists.

“It likely is not the act of using the keyboard or other gadgets that is the issue, but the position in which people are using them that makes them more prone to problems,” says orthopedic surgeon Rachel Rohde, M.D., who specializes in upper extremity surgery.

With respect to promoting healthy keyboarding, Dr. Rohde offers these tips:

• Your keyboard position should allow your elbows to be at 90 degrees or straighter and your wrists to be in a neutral position, or just slightly extended. Make sure you are able to maintain appropriate posture and that your feet are flat on the floor, not dangling, which can contribute to poor posture.
• Your mouse should be at the same level as the keyboard. This is easier on the tendons and muscles in your forearm and wrist.
• Your wrist rest should only be used when you are not typing. Leaning the wrist on a pad can contribute to nerve compression or tendonitis.
• Take a break every 30 minutes to stretch your muscles and relax your joints.

So what do you do if you are experiencing discomfort during keyboarding or game-playing activities?

“Most of these aches and pains are temporary and will resolve with a few simple measures,” says Dr. Rohde.

She suggests:

• rest (including temporary splinting)
• ice and/or anti-inflammatory use to reduce inflammation
• posture adjustment

“If these do not give you relief, or if you have bruising, swelling, numbness, or tingling, see your doctor for evaluation. Many people benefit from hand therapy or ergonomic education.”

Dr. Rachel Rohde is an orthopedic surgeon at William Beaumont Hospital and specializes in upper extremity surgery. She graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed her residency in Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh, followed by a Fellowship in Hand and Microvascular Surgery at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

Beaumont Among U.S. News & World Reports’ ‘Best Hospitals

All three Beaumont Hospitals are represented on the 2009 U.S. News & World Report “Best Hospitals” lists. 

Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, on the list every year for the past 15 years, is ranked in eight medical specialties. Beaumont Hospital, Troy, on the list for three of the past four years, is ranked in Neurology/Neurosurgery. Beaumont Hospital, Grosse Pointe (known as Bon Secours Cottage Health Services for most of the data tracking period) appears on the lists for the first time in two specialties: Neurology/Neurosurgery and Orthopedics. Beaumont assumed ownership of Bon Secours hospital in October 2007. 

“Beaumont’s rankings on these prestigious national lists highlight our reputation for clinical and academic excellence,” says Ananias Diokno, M.D., executive vice president and chief medical officer, Beaumont Hospitals. “The expertise of our physicians, the outstanding quality of care provided by our nurses and staff and the exceptional support provided by hospital leadership were essential components for achieving this recognition.”

The authoritative and influential “Best Hospitals” list analyzed 4,861 hospitals for its rankings. Only 1,500 hospitals met eligibility requirements, and of that group, just 174 of the hospitals scored high enough to be ranked in at least one medical specialty on this year’s lists.  In all, the magazine ranked 16 specialties, 12 on measurable data and four on reputation scores. Complete rankings are accessible online today at www.usnews.com/besthospitals and on newsstands July 21.

Now in it’s 20^th year, the rankings in 12 of the 16 specialties are predominately driven by hard data. There are four components: reputation, death rate, patient safety (new this year) and care-related factors such as nursing and patient services. In four of the specialties (ophthalmology, psychiatry, rehabilitation and rheumatology), reputation scores alone determine the ranking.

To be eligible, hospitals must meet three of these conditions: be a teaching hospital, have at least 200 beds or at least 100 beds with four of the eight predetermined medical technologies available. Then, hospitals have to meet a specified volume of certain procedures and conditions over three years or have been nominated by at least one physician in the past three years on a specialist survey. Finally, reputation, death rate, patient safety and factors like nurse staffing and technology help finalize ranking order.