Workers that are most apt to develop repetitive stress injuries

Data compiled by the Pain Relief Institute (PRI) shows that as many as 60-75% of workplace injuries that are reported each year are repetitive stress injuries. Those same statistics show that one in eight workers have this type of injury and that nearly all those who have surpassed retirement age have them.

This type of debilitating, work-related injury impacts individuals in many different fields of work.

Teachers’ repetitive stress injuries may be caused by writing on a chalkboard. Coffee shop baristas may suffer this type of injury from repeatedly operating espresso machines. Clerical personnel may be left with lasting impairments from answering the phone or using computers. Assembly line work, barcode scanning and other jobs that involve repetitive movement can cause this type of cumulative trauma disorder as well.

Three medical conditions are often classified as repetitive stress injuries. They are tendonitis, bursitis and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Tendonitis initially involves the swelling of a patient’s tendons but can quickly deteriorate into inflammation or tearing if not treated early on. Those workers most susceptible to the condition are the ones who subject their bodies to repeated trauma, lift heavy loads or move their limbs a lot. A person’s shoulders, hands or elbows are most affected by this condition.

Bursitis is a condition whereby the fluid-filled sacs that protect our body’s joints become inflamed or infected. This is most often brought about by overuse. A patient’s condition can move from discomfort to a reduction in mobility, swelling of joints, pinched nerves or numbness and pain if left untreated.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is brought about by someone putting too much pressure on the median nerve or the one that runs down their arm and into their wrist. It allows you to control the movement of your hand. Many individuals who suffer from this condition will experience weakness, numbness and pain in their wrist and hand. Individuals may perform exercises or have to undergo surgery to relieve this nerve pressure.

If you think of those individuals in your inner circle, then you can probably readily identify someone who has been diagnosed with one of these common conditions. If you believe that the repetitive stress injury that you’re suffering from was brought about by your Los Angeles job, then you may be entitled to compensated medical care and lost wages. An attorney can advise you of your rights in California.