Mark Harbeke

Here's a workplace issue that's near and dear to me. Well, not dear, but certainly near. I'm talking about carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS).

I find during times of extreme typing that I have been susceptible to CTS. I sometimes take short breaks to shake my wrists to subside the pain. I also take glucosamine and chondroitin tablets, which help lubricate my joints.

This fact sheet by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke gives a broad and complete glimpse of this ailment, which predominantly affects women aged 42 and older. However, anyone is a candidate and there are a variety of factors that can make one susceptible to this injury, including any health conditions that directly affect the body's nerves and cause compression to them.

Although data entry-heavy job functions were officially taken off the list after a landmark Mayo Clinic study in 2001, still on the list of risk factors is work stress – and that's not something that can necessarily be mitigated by medicine, surgery, or changing how you physically approach work.

Factors outside most employees' control, of course, contribute to stress at work. As Eric Gershon wrote in the Hartford Courant just yesterday, these include layoffs, and even being a close call of a recent round of layoffs. Then there's the extent to which you like your job, which is a whole different ball of wax. "Economic pressures combine with workplace conditions, contributing to workers' stress," Gershon writes.

Businesses owe it to themselves to implement employee engagement best practices that target early identification and treatment of CTS and other repetitive strain injuries. Why? As the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke states, in 1998 the number of diagnosed CTS cases was estimated at 3 in 10,000 workers. But by 2004, this had risen to 20 in 10,000. At an estimated $30,000 in medical bills and lost time from work per affected employee per year, these types of injuries can derail productivity and profitability, especially in smaller firms.

Do you suffer from CTS or know someone who does? Have you (they) had to take time away from work to have it treated, or adjust work-related tasks to compensate for it?