The Dangerous Affair Between Mouse and Hand

In recent times, hospitals have been crowded with people, mostly office workers, among whom women are in the majority. It is learned that they all experienced varying degrees of wrist pain and numbness, and sometimes even lacked strength, which seriously affected their work and life. Experts from 120 Health Network www.120.net said that this symptom is called carpal tunnel syndrome, mainly caused by improper use of the mouse.

Carpal tunnel syndrome, also known as "mouse hand", refers to the symptoms caused by the compression of the median nerve when it enters the palm. It mainly leads to pain and numbness in the index finger and middle finger, and a feeling of weakness in the thumb muscles. Nowadays, more and more people spend long hours using computers every day. These internet users repeatedly type on the keyboard and move the mouse, causing the wrist joint to be overused due to prolonged, repetitive, and excessive activities. This results in numbness, swelling, pain, and spasms in the wrist muscles or joints, making this condition quickly become a common modern civilization disease. Some people call this group of symptoms different from traditional hand injuries "mouse hand."

Women are the biggest victims of "mouse hand"

The early signs of "mouse hand" are fatigue and numbness in the fingers and hand joints. Sometimes, there may be a slight sound during joint movement, similar to the symptoms of "stenosing tenosynovitis," but it affects more joints than tenosynovitis. The carpal tunnel is not an independent organ; it specifically refers to a structure near the wrist joint where the palmar side is formed by the transverse carpal ligament and the dorsal side by the distal radioulnar joint, forming a tube-like structure through which most of the blood vessels and nerves to the palm pass.

Hand surgery experts believe that the mouse is more likely to cause hand injuries than the keyboard because people always repeatedly and mechanically move one or two fingers when using the mouse. This monotonous and slight activity can strain the wrist ligaments. Other professions that may cause similar effects include musicians, teachers, editors/reporters, and architectural designers, all of which involve frequent use of both hands.

According to relevant surveys, women are the biggest victims of carpal tunnel syndrome, with a three times higher incidence rate than men, mostly between the ages of 30 and 60. This is because women usually have smaller wrists, making the median nerve in the wrist more susceptible to compression. Additionally, pregnant women, patients with rheumatoid arthritis, diabetics, hypertensive individuals, and those with thyroid dysfunction may also develop carpal tunnel syndrome.

The higher the mouse position, the greater the damage to the wrist

Do not work continuously at the computer for too long. After using the mouse for an hour, you need to do some hand-relaxing exercises. It has been found in real life that the higher the mouse position, the greater the damage to the wrist; the farther the mouse is from the body, the greater the damage to the shoulder. Therefore, the mouse should be placed in a slightly lower position, equivalent to the height of the elbow when sitting upright with the upper arm perpendicular to the ground. The keyboard position should also be about the same. Many computer desks do not have dedicated positions for the mouse, so placing the mouse on the desktop for long-term work obviously causes harm.

Placing the mouse on the table also increases the distance between the mouse and the body, and the force is borne by the shoulder and elbow for a long time, which is one of the reasons leading to neck-shoulder-wrist syndrome. When the angle between the upper arm and the body is kept below 45 degrees, the distance between the body and the mouse is appropriate. If it's too far, the forearm will carry the upper arm and shoulder forward, causing continuous tension in the joints and muscles.

Raising the swivel chair can also prevent "mouse hand." If adjusting the mouse position is difficult, you can put both the keyboard and mouse on the desk and raise the swivel chair. The relative lowering of the desk shortens the distance between the body and the desk.

Using scientific methods to place the mouse greatly reduces the incidence of "mouse hand," allowing every office worker who sits in front of a computer to easily and happily do their job.

In general, although the mouse and hand often go together, this relationship is dangerous. Experts remind office workers to pay more attention to the use of the mouse in daily life and work. If you feel discomfort in your hand and are busy with work without time to go to the hospital, you can log on to 120 Health Network http://www.120.net/ and visit the doctor's personal website http://doc.120.net/ for free detailed consultation.