Occupational Injuries

Prevention

Reduce your risk.

Ergonomic specialists recommend the following adjustments to avoid workplace injuries, including back, neck and shoulder pain:

• Change your body position periodically throughout the day
• Rearrange your work area to avoid excessive bending, stooping and reaching
• Try to relax, as many occupational injuries and painful episodes arise from continuously tensing your neck and shoulder muscles while working
• Alternate tasks so that you can pause from repetitive motions for several minutes
• Take short breaks that involve active exercise (walking, stretching, etc.)
• Keep the top of your computer monitor at eye level and your elbows bent at a 90 degree ankle in order to reach the keyboard

Symptoms

Pinpoint your pain.

Workplace injury symptoms coincide with the specific injury incurred. However, the most frequently reported symptoms of repetitive motion injuries include:

• Red skin that’s warm to touch
• Pain reproduced when moving or flexing the affected area
• Pain when resting the affected area
• Tenderness
• Decreased range of motion
• Swelling
• Joint stiffness
• Tingling in the affected area

Diagnosis

Get the answers you need.

At our practice, occupational injuries are diagnosed using X-rays, computed tomography (CT) scans, and magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI) scans.

Treatment

Life’s too short to put up with pain.

Helping patients manage work-related injuries and illness, our orthopaedic surgeons offer award-winning care to manage pain and expedite recovery. Non-invasive treatment options include:

• Elevation and icing of the affected area
• Heat or cold applications
• Use of braces or splints to immobilize the affected area
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
• Exercise programs to stretch and strengthen the area
• Conditioning exercises to prevent further injury
• Physical therapy

Depending on the type and severity of injury, Dr. Robert Kayal, MD and his orthopaedic team may treat occupational injuries by applying laser therapy to trigger points or larger tissue regions. As a result of these scientifically proven laser techniques, patients experience expedited rehabilitation and faster return to employment. A depomedrol injection may also be used for more stubborn work-related injuries.For more acute workplace injuries, surgery may be recommended.