RSI Repetitive Strain Injury – Mausarm

Does anyone know of a doctor in Zurich who specializes in RSI.
I have been suffering for over 3 months have seen 3 doctors and am under the care of a physiotherapist. The problem is however getting worse and I think I need to find a specialist in this area.

Thanks

If its to do with your wrist ... suggest you speak with Canadian Dude ..

Alternately, get in touch with MissBehaving, as she has recently had a spate of this.

You can also carry out a search in English on this site : http://www.doctor.ch/

Hi Muppet, I'm going to guess that you've already done a lot of research yourself about this? If not, I'd suggest you would, since a doctor isn't going to give you very much in the way of advice that you can't find for yourself. Unless you've got carpal tunnel and they are going to do surgery.

Have you spoken with your employer and what are they doing about? Have they checked for example that setup at work is ergonomically correct and that everything possible is being done to help? After all, this is a workplace safety issue. Have they told you that they expect you take regular breaks from the computer? Have you been doing this yourself? Have they had a qualified specialist in to assess your work setup?

In the past I've used software which forces me to take short breaks based on my keyboard and mouse use. I also took steps like buying a raised desk and a special chair.

Even something as simple as shifting your mouse use to the left hand can greatly improve the situation (there's less distance to stretch on the left). It takes about a day to get used to it, but before long you won't think about it anymore.

I'm not saying you shouldn't consult a doctor, but all I'm saying is that a doctor or physio won't know how to advise you with respect to how you are using the computer, or even which muscles may be engaging incorrectly. Therefore you'd be well advised to hit google (and to fix your avatar while you are at it, [cough])

Mark

Hi,

Have you had your blood tested? If not, get your doctor to do it as soon as possible. Also, I would ask if you can have an ultrasound scan.

I was off work for 4 weeks due to RSI in both wrists and after that another month of working part-time.
Acupuncture (both with needles and a laser) helped to reduce the pain enormously. I was prescribed painkillers, anti-inflammatories and Arnica salve, as well as wearing supports on both wrists for about 6 weeks.
And then a few weeks ago I started to get the same pain etc. in my left foot, so my doctor refered me to a rheumatologist (can't spell, sorry!) who has now said (after testing my blood and *ahem* other bodily fluids) that the RSI-like symptoms were brought on by an infection, most likely in my tonsils. The pain in the joints can last up to 5 months and longer if you are unlucky.

I'm not saying that you don't actually have RSI, but it is something that *I think* you should discuss with your doctor.

Hope you feel better soon!

I started having this problem more than 10 years ago and had the luck to come to a doctor who gave me the following tip:

Always make sure you have your whole underarm resting on the table and only move your hand and wrist to move the mouse. It takes a bit of getting used to but since then I have never had any problems and I work with the mouse 8-10 hours per day. I have also seen how colleagues have improved dramatically after starting doing this.

Another word of caution regarding computer work - never lean on your left elbow while you surf the net! Your ulnar nerv may get inflamed and it easily gets cronical.

Thanks for the advice guys (including the part about my avatar, not sure what happend to it)
I have just found a book on amazon called "It's not carpal tunnel syndrome" so will give that a read and also get the blood test.
cheers
Muppet

I had a horrible case of rsi that kept recurring a few years ago that really hindered my work life and was painful enough that it stayed with me as I was going to bed. It was probably a combination of poor posture and stress but at the time it seemed like nothing would help.

Happily now I can type for hours on end (even without breaks!) and did not require any surgery. It was a combination of physiotherapy and massage (only about 5 sessions), taking breaks every hour as mentioned in the beginning, and I also read a book called "The MindBody Perscription by John Sarno". I was pretty skeptical at the time about the book but really it didn't require any additional commitment! I wanted to avoid surgery as much as possible and only wanted it as a last resort.

I think the book helped a lot for me to understand the stress connection. For myself the problems used to flare up whenever I moved to a new location or changed jobs.

Info from the Harvard RSI site:
http://www.rsi.deas.harvard.edu/mb_what_is.html

Also I found that having an RSI just added to the stress so it was kind of a feedback loop. Of course this may be different for everyone so I do hope you find a good doctor who can do a proper diagnosis.

I'd recommend reading the amazon.com reviews on the John Sarno book as well because they are informative as well and you can do that for free.

Hey folks,

Did anything ever come of this thread? I'm also curious about an RSI specialist here, but since RSI isn't even recognized as a disease here, I haven't found that regular doctors take it seriously. My right thumb and forefinger (my spacing thumb and clicking finger, resp.) have started to show increasing symptoms (aches and numbness), so I am starting to get worried. I'd like to see a doctor so I can have real, clear guidance on what to do (including potentially having a doctor write a "prescription" for my employer to actually do a proper ergonomics assessment/improvement of the workplace).

Any thoughts? Thanks!

Hi

It’s very hard to find a Dr here who really understands RSI. The best help I found was with the physiotherapists at the University hospital. I saw 3 Drs all who wanted to cut me open in 3 different areas, when I realized that they could not even agree on where to operated I decided to forget surgery and go to the uni hospital where they sent me for physio. My sister thought surgery would be a quick fix had 2 operations on her hands and after 6 months the symptoms started coming back.

If the symptoms are still only in your hand (count yourself lucky for now) go see Sunita at Ergotherapie Sinhand. Schindlerstrasse 4 8006 Zürich +41 (0)43 255 03 21 she speaks excellent English, and also works with a hand specialist, ask her for a referral.

She is FANTASTIC and works with a really amazing Ergonomist who will come to your work place and sort it out. You company should pay for this. If you get hold of your health and safety officer and tell them you are now seeking medical help and need to see an Ergonomist, they should jump (my company did and they could not sort this out quick enough after months of giving me the run around, the minute I said Dr Help they jumped I think they are scared of getting sued)

The biggest favor you could do for yourself is get on Amazon and buy a book called “ It's not carpal tunnel syndrome “ this book has became my bible and has kept me going for the last 4 years.

Good Luck, sorry to hear that this is happening to you, it’s not great but is manageable

cheers

Thanks for the details, i'll look into it once i am over my bronchitis!

I work for a small company; we don't have a health and safety officer (or anything even close). Do you have any ideas how to productively broach the subject with my bosses? I've brought up before that i've been having troubles (and bought myself new keyboard and mouse, have been adjusting stuff, etc), but haven't gotten any actual acknowledgement of the problem.

Thanks, collective EF brain!

RSI is definately a problem - I've had my life radically transformed by this 'disease'. My experience is based mainly in the UK so please follow up previous suggestions from EF members as to dealing with employers in Switzerland.

RSI is caused by using the same muscles too fast too often. Most athletes don't expect their muscles to workout the way PC users expect their wrist/arm muscles to work. Bad ergonomics just makes the problem worse. Stress as stated above again just makes the problem worse. And, if you carry on working through the pain as I did, you will end up being unable to use your hands at all. At my lowest point, I was unable to cut up my food or plait my children's hair.

By UK definitions, RSI (repetitive strain injury) is termed WRULD (work related upper limb disorder). Prevention is in the UK partially the employer's responsibility and partially the employee's responsibility but most employers ask the employee to fill a self assessment safety form and consider their job done. In my opinion, this is opting out.

So my suggestions are:
1. Take a break every 10 minutes – relatively few smokers develop RSI.
2. Adopt the 90degree rule. Your knees should be at 90 degrees to the floor (I prefer my knees slightly tilted lower than my hips). Your forearms at 90 degrees to your upper arms. Your hands level with your forearms. Your eyes should be looking at the upper third of your PC screen. Shove a couple of boxes of printer paper under your PC if it is too low. Ask a colleague to check your position.
3. Get a physiotherapist to recommend exercises specific for you – I found certain back exercises very helpful. Over the day one’s back gets tired and one’s posture deteriorates. When one is stressed, often one tenses one’s shoulder muscles.
4. Get an ergonomic assessment of your work place. Make sure the PC is placed directly in front of you. Centre the keyboard so that the B of the keyboard is lined up in the middle of your body especially if you touch type. Make sure the mouse is directly in front of which ever arm you use. Move the mouse and keyboard around depending on which you are using at the time.
5. Discuss your workload with your boss. Identify what is causing you stress. Try to reduce it.

Extras which have helped me are:
1. New touch pad mouse – http://www.cirque.com/desktoptouchpa...-overview.aspx
2. Voice recognition software – Dragon Naturally Speaking helped me stay in work
3. Ergonomic chair – with loads of levers to fit to different body shapes
4. Pencil grips
5. Ergonomic software - I used one that counted keystrokes and mouse clicks and displayed pictures on the screen when maximum levels were exceeded.
6. Wrist braces, moulded to my wrists and lower arms by an occupational therapist, helped control pain at night.

Extras which I found of no value at all are gel filled wrist rests – these actually exacerbated my conditions.

Most of my information was gained via the internet, a RSI support group (http://www.londonrsisupportgroup.org.../page/rsi-home), books and self-experience. My GP knew of the condition but did not have much practical experience. If it is carpal tunnel syndrome, an operation can be successful, but the other medical conditions (inflamed/damaged nerve sheaths) are difficult to operate on as the actual source of pain is difficult to detect. Acupressure and acupuncture helps control the pain.

I hope this helps.