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WORK RELATED PROBLEMS
back & neck
pain | rehabilitation
| acupuncture | ergonomics
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There are three main sources of work related
injuries and disorders:
The human body is not designed very well for sitting for prolonged
periods of time. The introduction of advanced technology and
increased automation in the workplace means that as individuals,
many of us spend increasing amounts of time in a sitting position.
Prolonged sitting with a poor posture, whether
in front of a computer, a car or lorry steering wheel or any
other work based equipment, can place strain on the body.
If allowed to continue, this can lead to pain, swelling, muscular
injury and weakness. These types of injury often come on gradually
and deteriorate further over time.
Physiotherapy can help to alleviate these
symptoms and to resolve the cause of the problems. Rehabilitation
and advice and education about efficient working postures
are an important part of treatment. Occasionally, workplace
assessments may need to be carried out by one of our Physioergonomists.
Many jobs involve a moderate level of physical activity. Whilst
in general, this is good for the body, in some instances,
high levels of repetitious movement can lead to certain types
of injury, often with inflammation. These often occur in the
early days and weeks after starting a job that requires movement
that an individual is not accustomed to. The body usually
adapts over a period of time to new demands being placed on
it, but occasionally it fails to respond quickly enough.
Physiotherapy for patients with this type
of problem, focuses on reducing pain and swelling and on body
posture coaching to take the strain away from the affected
area. Early treatment for this type of injury is essential.
Many jobs require an element of manual handling. Manual handling
may involve lifting, pushing or pulling or the application
of forceful hand and arm movement. Whether this is frequent
or infrequent, heavy or relatively light, use of the correct
body postures will help to minimise strain and are important
in ensuring that injury is prevented.
However, sometimes, injury and painful problems
can occur in individuals who carry out a high level of manual
handling. Although the body is well designed for physical
activity, increasing age and loss of general fitness can contribute
to the accumulation of and this together with poor posture
in manual handling can lead to the development of painful
problems, particularly the back, neck and shoulders.
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