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Meta-Analysis: Association Between Wrist Posture and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Among Workers



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  • Personal Author:
  • Description:
    Background: Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a common work-related peripheral neuropathy. In addition to grip force and repetitive hand exertions, wrist posture (hyperextension and hyperflexion) may be a risk factor for CTS among workers. However, findings of studies evaluating the relationship between wrist posture and CTS are inconsistent. The purpose of this paper was to conduct a meta-analysis of existing studies to evaluate the evidence of the relationship between wrist posture at work and risk of CTS. Methods: PubMed and Google Scholar were searched to identify relevant studies published between 1980 and 2012. The following search terms were used: "work related", "carpal tunnel syndrome", "wrist posture", and "epidemiology". The studies defined wrist posture as the deviation of the wrist in extension or flexion from a neutral wrist posture. Relative risk (RR) of individual studies for postural risk was pooled to evaluate the overall risk of wrist posture on CTS. Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria. All were cross-sectional or case-control designs and relied on self-report or observer's estimates for wrist posture assessment. The pooled RR of work-related CTS increased with increasing hours of exposure to wrist deviation or extension/flexion [RR = 2.01; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.646-2.43; p < 0.01: Shore-adjusted 95% CI: 1.32-2.97]. Conclusion: We found evidence that prolonged exposure to non-neutral wrist postures is associated with a twofold increased risk for CTS compared with low hours of exposure to non-neutral wrist postures. Workplace interventions to prevent CTS should incorporate training and engineering interventions that reduce sustained non-neutral wrist postures. [Description provided by NIOSH]
  • Subjects:
  • Keywords:
  • ISSN:
    2093-7911
  • Document Type:
    Text
  • Funding:
    Grant
  • Genre:
    Journal Article
  • Place as Subject:
  • CIO:
    National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
  • Topic:
    Workplace Safety & Health
  • Location:
    North America
  • Pages in Document:
    27-31
  • Volume:
    5
  • Issue:
    1
  • NIOSHTIC Number:
    nn:20053717
  • Citation:
    Saf Health Work 2014 Mar; 5(1):27-31
  • Contact Point Address:
    Doohee You, Ergonomics Laboratory, 1301 South 46th Street, Building 163, Richmond Field Station, Richmond, CA 94804, USA
  • Email:
    doohee.y@berkeley.edu
  • Federal Fiscal Year:
    2014
  • Performing Organization:
    University of California, Berkley
  • Peer Reviewed:
    True
  • Start Date:
    20050701
  • Source Full Name:
    Safety and Health at Work
  • End Date:
    20250630
  • Collection(s):
  • Main Document Checksum:
    urn:sha-512:8f4e4dbf90160c48cb4cea069408c57b0064788e3d58a56d3f2219fc12840a1047defcbf1f6c0abcb323a5596f8259a53885560360b62bc464df8b2917b48bf5
  • Download URL:
  • File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 475.15 KB ]
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