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Physical effects of working with a computer?
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design219
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Apr 2, 2012, 03:21 PM
 
I just noticed I have a rather hard knot at the base of my right hand where I've been pressuring / resting on my desk while using the mouse. it's not quite on the wrist, but at the outside edge of the palm.

Is this common? Anybody else?
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Uncle Skeleton
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Apr 2, 2012, 04:15 PM
 
Is it a callus? I have a mousing callus
     
andi*pandi
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Apr 2, 2012, 04:25 PM
 
I don't have anything like that, and I do rest my hand on the desk. I have other side effects though. I have to remind myself to sit up straight at the computer.
     
mattyb
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Apr 2, 2012, 05:12 PM
 
     
design219  (op)
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Apr 2, 2012, 06:35 PM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
Is it a callus? I have a mousing callus
Yeah, but I think it's more, it seems a little deeper than just a callus. Almost like a little bump on the bone. Doesn't hurt, just odd.
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Was free. Now it's gone. Never to be seen again.
Off to join its brother and sister apps that could not
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Uncle Skeleton
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Apr 2, 2012, 07:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by mattyb View Post
Oh, yes, sitting. The great leveler. From the mightiest Pharaoh to the lowliest peasant, who doesn't enjoy a good sit? Oh, man, you are so right. Did you ever sit like this?

     
Uncle Skeleton
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Apr 2, 2012, 07:21 PM
 
Originally Posted by design219 View Post
Yeah, but I think it's more, it seems a little deeper than just a callus. Almost like a little bump on the bone. Doesn't hurt, just odd.
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MacNNUK
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Apr 2, 2012, 08:03 PM
 
I had something similar on a foot, doctors advice ? Hit it with a heavy book ! It worked.

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jmiddel
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Apr 2, 2012, 09:40 PM
 
That's exactly where I rest my hand as it hovers over the mPad and no knot here. How long have you noticed it? When you say 'bump on the bone' that would be a spur, but those hurt especially as you press on them. Where's the Tricorder when you need it
     
MacNNUK
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Apr 3, 2012, 05:37 AM
 

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ghporter
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Apr 3, 2012, 06:45 AM
 
What you describe could be all sorts of things, including a cyst or ganglion cyst (which is a specific problem). Resting your wrists on something while you type is bad for your wrists. Typing encourages extension (bending back) of your wrists, which stresses all the tendons in the wrist, which in turn puts pressure on the blood vessels and nerves deep inside the wrist. This is the classic way "carpal tunnel syndrome" problems crop up, but these are not "classic carpal tunnel syndrome" problems. If you just stop resting your wrists at all, and let your hands float over the keyboard while typing (and rest them some other way when not actively typing), these problems go away within days or weeks. You DO NOT want to have carpal tunnel problems; they will linger throughout your life and nag you, if not worse.

I'll admit that I often rest my hands while typing long passages, but I rest them on the bony lump at the base of the hand on the small-finger side. This rests the hand on the pisiform bone, and it does not put pressure on any vessels or nerves. I find that I type faster and more accurately when I hover my hands over the keyboard, but when I'm thinking of what I'm about to type, I slow down and my hands tend to just settle...

Get the thing checked out by a doctor, preferably one who works with hand therapists. If it's a problem, you'll know fast. If not, you'll rest easier.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
design219  (op)
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Apr 3, 2012, 09:13 AM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
Pics?


I think I'm going to try to make some changes to alter my hand position for a couple weeks and see what happens.
__________________________________________________

My stupid iPhone game: Nesen Probe, it's rather old, annoying and pointless, but it's free.
Was free. Now it's gone. Never to be seen again.
Off to join its brother and sister apps that could not
keep up with the ever updating iOS. RIP Nesen Probe.
     
ghporter
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Apr 4, 2012, 07:03 AM
 
That's the small finger side of the base of your hand, right? Can you move your small finger normally? Can you touch the tip of your thumb to the tip of your small finger?

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
design219  (op)
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Apr 4, 2012, 08:53 AM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
That's the small finger side of the base of your hand, right? Can you move your small finger normally? Can you touch the tip of your thumb to the tip of your small finger?
Yes to all those questions. I assume you're wondering about nerve damage, or some sort of ligament interruption? It all really seems fine as far as movement and feeling. No pain, just a bump.
( Last edited by design219; Apr 4, 2012 at 01:43 PM. Reason: typo)
__________________________________________________

My stupid iPhone game: Nesen Probe, it's rather old, annoying and pointless, but it's free.
Was free. Now it's gone. Never to be seen again.
Off to join its brother and sister apps that could not
keep up with the ever updating iOS. RIP Nesen Probe.
     
PB2K
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Apr 4, 2012, 11:20 AM
 
and my skin is very smooth in that area ! I used the mouse for too long !
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OAW
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Apr 4, 2012, 03:46 PM
 
Originally Posted by design219 View Post


I think I'm going to try to make some changes to alter my hand position for a couple weeks and see what happens.
I had something along that line temporarily ... though not that bad. It went away once I started using this:



Being a low-profile mouse ... I think that part of my wrist no longer gets pushed onto the desk as hard as it did when I used a mouse that was considerably taller.

OAW
     
Atheist
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Apr 5, 2012, 08:42 AM
 
Magic Trackpad FTW!

I had a ganglion cyst on my right wrist for years. It would vary in size and could be rather painful at times. The cyst completely disappeared and with it any pain once I switched from the Magic Mouse to the Magic Trackpad.
     
moonmonkey
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Apr 6, 2012, 03:30 AM
 
looks like a ganglion, go to doctor, not necessarily related to computer use.
     
ghporter
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Apr 6, 2012, 06:44 AM
 
I was thinking of a dislocation of the pisiform bone; it's tiny but important to the function of the small-finger side of the hand. But with everything working well on that side, I agree with moonmonkey that it looks like a ganglion cyst. These are not dangerous, but they get in the way and are often an uncomfortable hassle.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
   
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