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PROTEX™ Keyboarding System Fights Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) currently costs U.S. employers in excess of $27 billion annually in absenteeism and worker's compensation claims, and is deemed by many experts as the major occupational hazard of the information age. CTS occurs when the nerve and tendons in the carpal tunnel (inside the wrist) are compressed by awkward and forceful hand movements. The symptoms of CTS are numbness, tingling, and pain in the hands and fingers.

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a hand disease caused by the pressing of the median nerve present in the palmar side of the wrist. It causes severe pain in the wrist, triggering disturbance during sleep. Different products like splints, braces and gloves are available in the market to alleviate this disease but there was still a need to improve the wearability, comfort and cost of the product. This study was about designing a comfortable and cost-effective wearable system for mild-to-moderate CTS. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) therapy has been used to reduce the pain in the wrist.

After simulation by using Proteus software (which allowed the researchers to draw and simulate electrical circuits using ISIS, ARES and PCB design tools virtually), the circuit with optimum frequency, i.e. 33 Hz was selected, and the circuit was developed on a printed circuit board (PCB). The developed circuit was integrated successfully into the half glove structure.

The developed product had good thermophysiological comfort and hand properties as compared to the commercially available product of the same kind. In vivo testing (It involves the testing with living subjects like animals, plants or human beings) was performed which resulted in 85% confirmed viability of the product against CTS. A glove with an integrated circuit was developed successfully to accommodate various sizes without any sex specifications in a cost-effective way to mitigate the issue of CTS.

Industrial workers, individuals frequently using their hands or those diagnosed with CTS may wish to use this product as therapy. The attention could not be paid to the aesthetic or visual appeal of the developed product.

A very comfortable glove with integrated TENS electrodes was developed successfully to accommodate various sizes without any sex specifications in a cost-effective way to mitigate the issues of CTS.

The purpose of this article to study referrals to our hand service to find out how long they had been waiting and with what sort of clinical conditions. The Department of Health monitors outpatient's waiting time as the percentage of patients seen within a 13‐week target. This target does not include patients referred by consultants or other health professionals.

All the referral letters from other consultants or healthcare professionals still awaiting appointments were collected. The referrals were read and studied to ascertain the most likely diagnosis. This was recorded along with the source of the referral and the details to whom the referral was made. The date of the referral letter being received by the department (date stamped) was also noted.

A total of 157 referrals from consultants or healthcare professionals were waiting outpatient dates. The median waiting time was 448 days (range 20‐952 days). The most frequent source of referrals was from the orthopaedic department. Carpal tunnel syndrome was the most common problem awaiting an outpatient appointment.

The wait for a clinic appointment for these patients is long. This has come about as the result of the fact that the government targets for outpatient waiting times have been set for GP referrals alone and exclude referrals that have been made by other consultants or other healthcare professionals. This is a clinical governance issue for the Hospital Trust, the Primary Care Trust and for general practitioners.

The background to the need for attention to library environment in terms of conservation, disaster planning and external environmental factors is explained. Measures adopted at the UWI Trinidad are discussed in relation to operation and maintenance of buildings and physical plant and the activities of an environmental unit. A workplace evaluation project is described and discussed and factors relating to air conditioning are examined.

Defines ergonomics and discusses various issues such as anthropometry, seat design, workplace principles, manual materials handling, and cumulative trauma disorders. These important issues need to be appreciated if the objective of the facilities manager is to reduce work‐related injuries, improve productivity, and improve the quality of life of the workers.

At the one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic, patients undergo neurophysiological studies followed by clinical assessment by the orthopaedic consultant on the same day. Patients with paraesthesia or numbness in the median nerve distribution for greater than three months duration without a history of a previous soft tissue neck injury were selected for assessment in the one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic based on a proforma completed by their general practitioners. Data of patients attending the one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic over a ten‐month period were compared with that over the same period from a conventional hand clinic. A total of 77 patients attended the one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic over a ten‐month period. The mean time from referral to surgery was 23 weeks in this group compared to 44 weeks for a conventional clinic. On average, the one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic reduced the time from referral to surgery by 21 weeks. The one‐stop carpal tunnel syndrome clinic is convenient and cost effective for patients and hospitals.

Library managers face a variety of questions and concerns related to information technology on a daily basis. These include the relative merits of interpersonal and communication skills compared with technical abilities; the organisational structure that should be utilised in the distribution of computing resources; the policies that need to be created (or enforced) in relation to the personal use of business computers; issues surrounding computer usage problems (such as carpal tunnel syndrome) that pose potential threats to staff productivity; and the library manager’s pursuit of the “cutting edge” of technology. This study uses qualitative survey data to find patterns and themes among librarians in regard to their attitudes toward managing technology and technological change. It includes a selection of categorised survey responses, interpretation of the data by the author, and suggestions for further research.

The advancement of electronic technology and popularity of computer use have resulted in a variety of work related hand, wrist and arm injuries in computer operators. The phenomenon has raised public consciousness about ergonomics and the study of how humans interact with their physical environment. This article includes an annotated bibliography of books, book chapters, magazines, journal articles, and Internet resources from 1990 to the present dealing primarily with library ergonomic issues and concerns. The publication is suitable for researchers, administrators, librarians, library staffs, subject specialists, ergonomic consultants, physical therapists, or anyone interested in the topic to identify and locate useful information resources on library ergonomics.

This study aims to test the effects of Celliant armbands on grip strength in subjects with chronic wrist and elbow pain. Celliant® is a functional textile fabric containing minerals that emit infrared radiation (IR) in response to body heat. IR-emitting fabrics have biological effects including the reduction of pain and inflammation and the stimulation of muscle function.

A randomized placebo-controlled trial recruited 80 subjects (40 per group) with a six-month history of chronic wrist or elbow pain (carpal tunnel syndrome, epicondylitis or arthritis) to wear an armband (real Celliant or placebo fabric) on the affected wrist or elbow for two weeks. Grip strength was measured by a dynamometer before and after the two-week study.

For the placebo group, the mean grip strength increased from 47.95 ± 25.14 (baseline) to 51.69 ± 27.35 (final), whereas for the Celliant group, it increased from 46.3 ± 22.02 to 54.1 ± 25.97. The mean per cent increase over the two weeks was +7.8% for placebo and +16.8% for Celliant (p = 0.0372). No adverse effects was observed.

Limitations include the wide variation in grip strength in the participants at baseline measurement, which meant that only the percentage increase between baseline and final measurements showed a significant difference. Moreover, no subjective measurements of pain or objective neurophysiology testes was done.

Celliant armbands are easy to wear and have not been shown to produce any adverse effects. Therefore, there appears to be no barrier to prevent widespread uptake.

IR-emitting textiles have been studied for their beneficial effects, both in patients diagnosed with various disorders and also in healthy volunteers for health and wellness purposes. Although there are many types of textile technology that might be used to produce IR-emitting fabrics, including coating of the fabric with a printed layer of ceramic material, incorporating discs of mineral into the garment, the authors feel that incorporating ceramic particles into the polymer fibers from which the fabric is woven is likely to be the most efficient way of achieving the goal.

Celliant armbands appear to be effective in painful upper limb inflammatory disorders, and further studies are warranted. The mechanism of action is not completely understood, but the hypothesis that the emitted IR radiation is absorbed by nanostructured intracellular water provides some theoretical justification.

The impact of computer technology on libraries is changing the face of information services and how these services are delivered. It is significant that human interaction with computers prevails all service‐oriented institutions, especially libraries where circulation, reference, and technical services are fully automated and depend on computers for information access and retrieval via patron files and online public access catalogs. Libraries spend lots of time on implementing and upgrading electronic services and library functions. However, the human factors are generally overlooked. This article will provide a systematic way to address employee safety and health issues in the library through background readings, library ergonomics in literature, current technologies on ergonomic product design and a case study of ergonomics program implementation at Queens College Library, the City University of New York.