News - Chiropractic
Part 2. Postures, check yours out, learn how.
Physical risk factors at work that increase the onset of neck pain:
* Prolonged work in a sedentary position
o “The preponderance of evidence suggests that working in a sedentary position for prolonged periods increases the risk of neck pain”.
+ If you have an occupation or hobby that puts you in the same posture for extended periods of time make a point to change it up every 30-45 minutes. If you sit for a majority of the time, for example, stand up and walk around the surrounding area for a couple minutes.
* Neck posture
o “We found evidence that working with the cervical spine in flexion for prolonged periods of time may increase the risk of neck pain”.
+ Sit up straight with your head lined up with the center of your torso. This will reduce the amount of cervical spine flexion (i.e. forward leaning head posture) and take the stress/strain off the neck and area between the shoulder blades.
* Physical environment
o “We found preliminary evidence that the general physical environment (i.e. lighting, temperature, air quality, room size and acoustics) of a workplace is associated with the risk of neck pain”.
+ Be aware that simple components of your physical environment can have a drastic effect on your musculoskeletal system.
* Keyboard position
o “We found evidence that inadequate keyboard position may increase the risk of neck pain in computer users”.
+ “A distance from the desktop edge to the “J” key greater than 12.5 cm was associated with a small reduction in incidence of neck/shoulder pain”.
+ Using a keyboard requiring an elbow angle of 90⁰ is associated with a reduction in neck/shoulder pain.
* Mouse position
o “We found evidence that inadequate mouse postion may increase the risk of neck pain in computer users”
+ Flexing the shoulders more than 25⁰ is associated with increase incidence of neck/shoulder pain. In other words keep your arms as close to your side as possible when using the mouse.
* Telephone shoulder rests
o “A phase III study of American office workers who used telephone shoulder rest devices had at lease double the risk of developing neck/shoulder disorders compared to workers who did not use such devices”.
* Upper extremity posture
o “…office workers who used a keyboard which required an inner elbow angle greater that 121⁰ were five times less likely to develop neck/shoulder pain compared to those using keyboards which created smaller elbow angles”.
+ The ideal elbow angle when typing on the keyboard is 90⁰.
* Head posture
o “…those who worked with a monitor which caused their heads to tilt at an angle greater than 3⁰ were 50% more likely to develop neck/shoulder pain compared to those who did not.”
+ Make sure that the computer monitor is at eye level and close enough to prevent you from leaning your head forward.
* Chair armrests
o “We found evidence that the use of chairs with armrests was linked to lower risk for neck pain.”
Conclusion/wrap-up
Collectively the above information can be summed up in three words: Sit up straight. Specifically, make sure that your feet are firmly planted on the floor, that your shoulder joints are lined up with you hip joints and that your head is lined up with the center of your torso. Just as important, when using the computer make sure that the monitor is at eye level, that your arms are at your side (i.e. the shoulders are not flexed ≥ 25) and that your elbows are at 90⁰. This is much easier said than done, so hang in there and do not give up on trying to maintain a more ergonomically efficient posture.
Cote P, Velde G van der, Cassidy D, et al. The burden and determinants of neck pain in workers: results of the bone and joint decade 2000-2010 task force on neck pain and its associated disorders. J Manipulative Physiol Ther 2009; 32 (2S): S70-S86.
