ASSOCIATION BETWEEN CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME AND USAGE OF COMPUTER KEYBOARD AND MOUSE IN YOUNG, ADULT AND MIDDLE - AGED MALE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS - A SURVEY BASED ANALYSIS

Abstract

The rise in computer use and concurrent high rates in musculoskeletal complaints and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) among users have led to a controversy. The aim of this study is to determine the association between CTS and usage of computer keyboard and mouse in young, adult and middle - aged male Information technology professionals. The present study has used statistics to analyse and evaluate a possible relationship between CTS and computer
use. 100 general participants were included in this study. A simple random sampling was used for analysis and the statistics were analysed using “student‟s unpaired T-test”. The results were assessed using SPSS software. The results are represented in pie charts. The participants were within the age group of 18 - 65 years. Most of them were IT professionals and most of the participants had some amount of knowledge about carpal tunnel syndrome and its causes and effects. The study shows that computer use does not pose a severe occupational hazard for developing symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. There is evidence to suggest that occupational factors play a role in CTS.