degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

Pain is putting a strain on your bottom line! Employees who are suffering from repetitive motion injuries are not able to work at their ultimate performance level, costing you productivity and often medical costs which can lead to disability claims.

You’ve hired ergonomic experts to change the computer stations; You’ve given your employees’ new keyboards; you’ve tried every type of mouse on the market and spent thousands of dollars on chairs. You’ve read scores of articles describing the two biggest repetitive strain injuries: low back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome - you could actually repeat the symptoms in your sleep! You’ve analyzed, prioritized, been reactive and proactive. You’ve gone the gamut, and still you’re employees are in pain!

According to the Chronic Pain Association, U.S. companies lose an estimated $90 billion each year to sick time, reduced productivity and direct medical and other benefit costs due to chronic pain among employees. Add to this the fact that it is estimated that stress is costing industry $300 billion dollars, and pain is stressful, and you can easily see how pain will undermine the financial base of your business. Employees diagnosed with repetitive strain injuries will frequently get onto the treadmill of doctor appointments, medications, and various forms of therapy that have less than total success. While this is happening you need to shift work to other employees, or just let the work pile up.

What’s missing? The problem is that even with the most ergonomic workstations, people are still doing the same movements over and over. Their muscles get contracted and tied into knots, which puts a severe strain on the insertion points at the joints. Job-related repetitive strain injuries are costing industry millions of dollars in lost time and disability claims. As Worker’s Compensation fees soar, industry is desperately seeking answers to what is causing the repetitive strain injuries that have become rampant.

The term “repetitive strain injury” should immediately bring attention to the muscles, but why a muscle will cause pain, and how to treat the muscle, has been the missing component in the search. Short of having the employee change jobs there isn’t anything that can help – or is there!

Isolating the Muscles that Cause Pain

Ample time and money has been spent to review how an individual sits at a desk and types on a computer. Posture is always stressed and lumbar supports are added to chairs to help rest the back. However, even with the very best of posture, and the most advanced equipment, repetitive strain on the low-back and arm muscles is inevitable.

To a lesser degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

ve and proactive. You’ve gone the gamut, and still you’re employees are in pain!

According to the Chronic Pain Association, U.S. companies lose an estimated $90 billion each year to sick time, reduced productivity and direct medical and other benefit costs due to chronic pain among employees. Add to this the fact that it is estimated that stress is costing industry $300 billion dollars, and pain is stressful, and you can easily see how pain will undermine the financial base of your business. Employees diagnosed with repetitive strain injuries will frequently get onto the treadmill of doctor appointments, medications, and various forms of therapy that have less than total success. While this is happening you need to shift work to other employees, or just let the work pile up.

What’s missing? The problem is that even with the most ergonomic workstations, people are still doing the same movements over and over. Their muscles get contracted and tied into knots, which puts a severe strain on the insertion points at the joints. Job-related repetitive strain injuries are costing industry millions of dollars in lost time and disability claims. As Worker’s Compensation fees soar, industry is desperately seeking answers to what is causing the repetitive strain injuries that have become rampant.

The term “repetitive strain injury” should immediately bring attention to the muscles, but why a muscle will cause pain, and how to treat the muscle, has been the missing component in the search. Short of having the employee change jobs there isn’t anything that can help – or is there!

Isolating the Muscles that Cause Pain

Ample time and money has been spent to review how an individual sits at a desk and types on a computer. Posture is always stressed and lumbar supports are added to chairs to help rest the back. However, even with the very best of posture, and the most advanced equipment, repetitive strain on the low-back and arm muscles is inevitable.

To a lesser degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

than total success. While this is happening you need to shift work to other employees, or just let the work pile up.

What’s missing? The problem is that even with the most ergonomic workstations, people are still doing the same movements over and over. Their muscles get contracted and tied into knots, which puts a severe strain on the insertion points at the joints. Job-related repetitive strain injuries are costing industry millions of dollars in lost time and disability claims. As Worker’s Compensation fees soar, industry is desperately seeking answers to what is causing the repetitive strain injuries that have become rampant.

The term “repetitive strain injury” should immediately bring attention to the muscles, but why a muscle will cause pain, and how to treat the muscle, has been the missing component in the search. Short of having the employee change jobs there isn’t anything that can help – or is there!

Isolating the Muscles that Cause Pain

Ample time and money has been spent to review how an individual sits at a desk and types on a computer. Posture is always stressed and lumbar supports are added to chairs to help rest the back. However, even with the very best of posture, and the most advanced equipment, repetitive strain on the low-back and arm muscles is inevitable.

To a lesser degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

in injury” should immediately bring attention to the muscles, but why a muscle will cause pain, and how to treat the muscle, has been the missing component in the search. Short of having the employee change jobs there isn’t anything that can help – or is there!

Isolating the Muscles that Cause Pain

Ample time and money has been spent to review how an individual sits at a desk and types on a computer. Posture is always stressed and lumbar supports are added to chairs to help rest the back. However, even with the very best of posture, and the most advanced equipment, repetitive strain on the low-back and arm muscles is inevitable.

To a lesser degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

degree, employees who sit for hours, or use their hands to perform the same task repeatedly, for example employees on an assembly line, haven’t been studied as closely. If an employee stands at an assembly line and uses his arm in the same direction over and over, it’s likely that he’ll have pain in his shoulder. Or if she is sitting all day, her low back, and possibly her knees, will hurt. Employees who type at a computer for hours at a time, or who are doing fine-motor movements with their fingers will get all the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

The first step to reversing the pain drain is to watch the movements that employees do repetitively.

Why Muscles Cause Pain

All muscles originate on a stationary bone (“point A”), cross over a joint and then insert onto “point B”, a moveable bone. When the muscle contracts it pulls on the insertion point and the joint moves. However, when a muscle is repeatedly moved in exactly the same direction, often for hours at a time, the fibers actually shorten. This phenomenon is called “muscle memory”, and it is the key to the pain and lack of range-of-motion that is common in repetitive strain injuries. As the muscles shorten they are still attached to points “A” and “B”, but the tight muscle is putting tension on the insertion point and holding the joint in the bent position. This tension causes pain when the individual tries to move the joint.

A useful analogy is to compare this situation to pulling hair. If you pull your hair at the end, your head will hurt. However, there isn’t anything wrong with your head, and you don’t need drugs or surgery to release the pain. You simply need to let go of your hair. In the same way, when a muscle is putting tension on a joint the answer isn’t drugs or surgery, it is simply to release the tension and the pain will disappear.

The Solution – Plugging the Pain Drain

Once you know which muscles are being used over and over, the next step is developing a treatment program to reverse the movement and enable to muscle fibers to lengthen. The optimal results are found when the employee learns how to continue the treatment on a regular basis. Since the movement at work is repetitive, the treatment also must be done repetitively.

When an employee knows how to release the tension caused by repetitive strain injuries the results are remarkable. Tension is removed from the joints and pain is quickly eliminated, having a positive impact on both the employees job performance and also their daily lives. Morale is raised because the employee realizes that management cares, and loyalty is increased.

There are only winners. The employee is able to reverse or prevent pain, the company has a more productive workforce, and you have found a solution to a costly problem.