Repetitive stress conditions of the hand, wrist and elbow affect the office worker, athlete, and musician alike. And increasingly the condition is affecting the young limbs of children whose daily tasks meld as seamlessly with cell phones, keyboards and game controllers as they have traditionally with pencils and toothbrushes.
Such repetitive stress conditions include tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome, tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) and golfer’s elbow (medial epicondylitis). Playing-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMD) also fall within this category and are those conditions associated with professional musicians.
The key in staying strong and pain free is recognizing irritation when it occurs and adjusting activity accordingly, in order to prevent a more extensive problem. A series of rehabilitation exercises have been developed for the specific conditions and both serve as part of a treatment program as well as a preventative exercise program.
Some of the rehabilitation exercises for common repetitive stress condition Carpal Tunnel Syndrome include the median nerve glide, tendon glide and a neutral wrist splint.
A series of rehabilitation exercises, called the Musician 6 Pack, developed specifically for the demands of professional musicians entails stretching and core strengthening exercises, in order to reduce the chance of developing tendinopathic injuries and conditions, as well as reduce the duration of symptoms in those suffering from such.