Stress injuries can be disabling in academia, surgeon says
Kate Stoughton
Issue date: 9/16/05 Section: Campus News
Five professors and graduate students in the Department of Computer Science have suffered disabling repetitive stress injuries in as many years. The situation prompted Guillaume Marceau GS to organize a lecture by Dr. Arnold-Peter Weiss about hand-related repetitive stress injuries from computer use and how to prevent them.
Repetitive stress injuries among computer users mostly result from poor typing form and can be life-disabling, Weiss, a professor of orthopaedics at Brown Medical School and a surgeon at Rhode Island Hospital, told an audience in Barus and Holley 168 Thursday afternoon.
"Someone with a life-disabling injury cannot open doors on their own without pain moving up their arm," Marceau said. "They wouldn't be able to touch keyboards anymore. They might not even be able to wash their own hair."
RSIs are common, especially among Brown graduate students. About one in 30 or 40 working adults suffers from some form of RSI, Weiss said.
Ultimately, Weiss said, computer users should maintain good typing posture and take plenty of breaks. Not much is known about RSI, and often, once it becomes severe, it is difficult if not impossible to treat.
RSIs are specific to soft tissue such as tendons, ligaments, muscles, nerves and blood vessels. Most people who suffer from RSI experience it in their necks, shoulders, arms, elbows, wrists, hands and fingers.
Marceau asked Vice President for Research and Professor of Computer Science Andries van Dam to host the lecture after hearing Weiss deliver a similar speech in February 2004. Van Dam invited Weiss, who has treated him for an ongoing wrist problem, to speak in September so new students could benefit from his information before injuring themselves.
Marceau, who suffers from RSI-related wrist problems, is part of a growing movement to discover the causes of, improve prevention of and create solutions for RSI. He and Elisabeta Marai GS are currently conducting a survey of all Brown graduate students who suffer from RSI.
Repetitive stress injuries among computer users mostly result from poor typing form and can be life-disabling, Weiss, a professor of orthopaedics at Brown Medical School and a surgeon at Rhode Island Hospital, told an audience in Barus and Holley 168 Thursday afternoon.
"Someone with a life-disabling injury cannot open doors on their own without pain moving up their arm," Marceau said. "They wouldn't be able to touch keyboards anymore. They might not even be able to wash their own hair."
RSIs are common, especially among Brown graduate students. About one in 30 or 40 working adults suffers from some form of RSI, Weiss said.
Ultimately, Weiss said, computer users should maintain good typing posture and take plenty of breaks. Not much is known about RSI, and often, once it becomes severe, it is difficult if not impossible to treat.
RSIs are specific to soft tissue such as tendons, ligaments, muscles, nerves and blood vessels. Most people who suffer from RSI experience it in their necks, shoulders, arms, elbows, wrists, hands and fingers.
Marceau asked Vice President for Research and Professor of Computer Science Andries van Dam to host the lecture after hearing Weiss deliver a similar speech in February 2004. Van Dam invited Weiss, who has treated him for an ongoing wrist problem, to speak in September so new students could benefit from his information before injuring themselves.
Marceau, who suffers from RSI-related wrist problems, is part of a growing movement to discover the causes of, improve prevention of and create solutions for RSI. He and Elisabeta Marai GS are currently conducting a survey of all Brown graduate students who suffer from RSI.