Massage chairs, vibrating mouse may prevent computer-related injuries
Source: Thaindian.com ()
Washington, December 22 (ANI): Cornell University researchers are studying several innovative products, such as a message chair and a vibrating mouse, to determine whether they may help prevent back and other problems that result from sitting in front of a computer for long periods of time.
Alan Hedge, professor of design and environmental analysis in the universitys College of Human Ecology, has taken up this study at a time when the incidences of computer related injuries have increased in youngsters in their twenties.
One-third to one-half of all compensatory injuries are repetitive-motion injuries associated with office-type work,” says Hedge.
Back injuries, adds the researcher, also account for one-third of all workplace injuries.
Hedge says that most of these injuries were associated with heavy lifting a decade ago, but their biggest cause nowadays appears to be sitting in front of a computer all day.
He says that problems like carpal tunnel syndromea medical condition in which the median nerve is compressed at the wrist, leading to pain and muscle weakness in the forearm and handwere usually reported by people in their late 30s to early 40s during the early 1990s.
However, he adds, the average age of onset of such conditions has dropped to the mid-20s these days.
“Now kids are using computers at age 2, so by the time they enter the workforce they’ll already be primed for injuries. This is very serious because an injury can become life-changing; carpal tunnel, for example, is not curable. They’ll have to manage this chronic condition for the rest of their lives,” Hedge says.
Just to address these concerns, Hedge adds, his Cornell Human Factors and Ergonomics Research Group is studying innovative products.
The researchers have so far studied a vibrating to see whether it could prevent upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders in computer users by signalling people …