Working in a manufacturing setting requires many people to perform the same task repeatedly every day. That can mean eight hours or more a day on your feet, as well as straining your back, hips, knees and hands.
For those who hope to retire from manufacturing jobs, repetitive-motion injuries — also called repetitive-stress injuries — could prove a bigger risk than a catastrophic workplace accident.
Crystalline silica is an abundant natural material found in soil, stone and sand. It is also present in many construction materials such as brick, mortar and concrete. It becomes respirable when any of the afore-mentioned materials are cut or broken down into fine particles.
Crystalline silica is one of the most common minerals found worldwide in the earth’s crust. It is frequently used in many industrial processes such as mining, quarrying and stone-cutting. Breathing air contaminated with crystalline silica particles can cause serious respiratory and lung diseases.
When loud noises cannot be reduced or eliminated through engineering controls, workers who are exposed to them must use hearing protection devices (HPDs) to conserve their hearing. This notion is not new, nor is the concept that HPDs require fit-testing to be effective.
After brain or spinal cord injuries, paralysis of the hand can occur. Due to the restrictions in the professional and private spheres, this is a great loss of quality of life for those affected. The University of Stuttgart has now developed a hand exoskeleton with which the gripping ability of a paralyzed hand can be restored.
Developed at JLR’s Gaydon site – home to one of the largest 3D printing facilities in the UK – the glove is based on a lightweight lattice structure optimized to provide support to reduce muscle fatigue but also to be flexible and comfortable enough to wear during an eight-hour shift.
The company claims that it could help better protect employees on the production line from the threat of a musculoskeletal disorder.
If your job tasks include performing the same movements regularly, you could be at risk for developing a repetitive motion injury. Almost any job can be at risk for this type of injury, though some are more likely to cause one than others.
Using your phone on a regular basis is taking a toll on your body. Here are examples:
Smartphone pinky: Twitter users have been sharing photos of how their pinky fingers are bent, dented, and deformed thanks to too-big smartphones. Popular Science suggests these dents are temporary, but hand surgeon Rachael Rohde warns that these dents could be a sign of a different condition.
People who spend lots of time on their smartphones may be scrolling, tapping and swiping their way to carpal tunnel syndrome, a painful wrist and hand disorder.
A small study found a link between extended use of smartphones and other hand-held electronic devices and a greater likelihood for experiencing the telltale wrist and hand pain of the syndrome.
Texting, playing video games, and even taking too many selfies can all lead to repetitive stress injuries.
“In my own practice and via discussions with other musculoskeletal providers, patients, young and mature, are unaware of the risk of injury from their smartphones,” Dr. Renee Enriquez, rehabilitation specialist at UT Southwestern Medical Center, told Healthline.