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Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Cases Drop Among White-Collar Workers.

Posted on: Friday, 18 April 2008, 00:00 CDT

By Susan Abram

The shooting pain keeps Salvatore Santospirito awake at nights. His fingers on his left hand go numb. It's difficult to work.

Santospirito, 73, is relatively new to the world of keyboard and mouse. Once a carpenter, he became an engineer who eventually turned to computers to stay competitive. A few years later, the aches and pains followed.

"I work on a computer all day," the Northridge resident said. "I probably got carpal tunnel syndrome from doing repetitive work."

Not long ago, many thought that such aches and pains were almost certain to come from computer work, rather than from labor such as the carpentry Santospirito did as a young man at his father's side.

But recent data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics show that, from 2005 to 2006, carpal tunnel cases actually dropped 21percent among business professionals.

And no such decrease was seen among manual laborers. In fact, from 2005 to 2006, the last year for which data were available, there was a 39percent increase of carpal tunnel cases among construction workers.

"People are much more aware of carpal tunnel syndrome, and proper ergonomic adjustments have been made in offices," said Dr. Alexander Raskin, an orthopedic surgeon from Orthopedic Consultants Medical Group in Encino, who is treating Santospirito.

Economists from the Bureau of Labor caution that the figures don't tell the whole story: Their information comes from workers who took days off because of the pain, leaving an untold number of unreported cases.

Still, some say there are many explanations for the decrease among white-collar workers -- despite our keyboard-tapping, text- messaging, video-gaming ways -- including a change in workers' compensation laws, with fewer claims filed.

"I think it was over-reported initially," said Cindy Burt, program manager for the ergonomics division of UCLA's Office of Environment, Health and Safety.

"People were very familiar with carpal tunnel syndrome, and whenever someone had pain in their hand or their arm or their wrist, that's what they were diagnosed with."

Primary-care doctors were likely to mistake tendonitis or other nerve or muscular problems for carpal tunnel, she said.

With awareness of the syndrome came better workspace conditions. Chairs were adjusted. Monitors came down to eye level. The mouse got a pad with wrist support.

Dr. George Rubens, a hand surgeon for the Southern California Permanente Medical Group in Woodland Hills, is among those who suspect tendonitis was often mistaken for carpal tunnel syndrome.

"Carpal tunnel syndrome has been around for a long time and I don't see any changes, but there's been no scientific proof that working on a computer can cause an increase," Rubens said.

In 1947, California became the only state with regulations to address repetitive-strain injuries. The guidelines require employers to provide training after two people doing the same job develop the same kind of injury.

"Those who do upholstery, those who use tools, are still at a very high risk," Raskin said.

And it is seen among those with chronic conditions, such as diabetes, or among pregnant women.

"By no means is carpal tunnel gone," Raskin said. "It's a syndrome that will always be around."

Santospirito has his own theory on why it seems to be on the decline among computer users: Children are training their young muscles on computers at an earlier age.

"But I'm new to computers," he said. "I've had to learn to live with the pain."

Source: Daily News; Los Angeles, Calif.

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