Carpal Tunnel, Sore Joints, etc.

Black Ice

I was playing Mega Man X3 the other day and as usual my thumbs got sore from playing a MMX game (the dash button is mapped out horribly). It got me to thinking - I had tendinitis in my wrist from a sports injury a few months ago and out of about 50 people that asked me about it, one asked me if it was from using a computer too much.

The thought seems ridiculous to me, but I know a lot of older people with carpal tunnel in their wrists and/or hands from: piano, (apparently) typing, and I've heard about people getting similar problems from playing too many video games, so I guess it's a plausible question.

Seeing as there's a lot of video game players here, I thought it would be an interesting poll to see if anyone has, or knows someone with, a video game-related "injury." Have joints started popping ever since you began playing some particular button masher heavily? Have you developed carpal tunnel? Is this some sort of myth that you can develop problems from playing "too many video games"?

Szechuan

Because I have not discovered a reliable way of using a computer desk/chair, the muscles around the bottom half of my right shoulderblade constantly ache, pop, and stretch. Sometimes for days after an extended work/gaming period. Boxing usually stretches it back out, but it still hurts. It's one of the many reasons I have switched to console gaming.

slurpeepoop

I've been playing video games since the 70's, and I have moderate arthritis and have had multiple surgeries for carpal tunnel.

Beware of old age, you will be like me one day. Live fast, die young. It's the only way.

Ahhsee

I had a small case of carpal tunnel in my left wrist from playing q2 very often. The problem was my config. I was using arrow keys and kp_0 for jump. This led to my wrist being at an awkward angle and constantly moving in ways it is not supposed to during the course of a day.

It got to the point that I couldn't feel any fingers other than my index and thumb. It lasted for about 3 months and I read up on things. I knew what it was, so I adjusted my config to something that was natural. ESDF for life.

Changing the habits that lead to getting repetitive movement disorders like carpal tunnel is the best method if it hasn't progress to the point of needing surgery. If your shoulder hurts, get a taller chair, shorter desk, keyboard tray, move closer to the desk, chair with arm rests...

There's many options to help out, and within a small amount of time, you can notice a huge difference.

The only problem I have these days is a severe shoulder ache/cramp that won't go away, if I've spent over a few hours in a short session playing my DS. I find that no matter how I hold the thing, my arms shift and I end up holding it near my chest, and staring straight down on it. Because of this problem, I almost always play while laying down, propping up pillows so that my neck reaches a comfortable tilt, then prooping my arms up the same to be comfortable. I think it's just the DS's weight, compared to handhelds I used to play religiously for hours on end (gameboy pocket). I've thought about getting a micro just for my GBA games because of this issue.

bruin

My mom has been addicted to Tetris DS for a few weeks and a few days ago she said he shoulderblades started hurting when she would play. She's old though.

Wraith260

i don't know why but for some reason using a dual shock(or any variation of the PS pad), for prolonged periods results in sore wrists. i think i may be the positioning of the trigger buttons. i know that when i first picked up an Xbox a marathon session of Halo resulted in the same thing, mostly due to me using my middle fingers on the triggers instead of my index fingers. perhaps its that extra stretch to the to the bottom triggers on the PS pads(which i also used my middle fingers for), that caused it.

i know that these are the only times i've felt any pain after prolonged gaming sessions. well i guess there was some discomfort after any prolonged session on any hand-held. a bit of stiffness in the neck from looking down at the neck, but nothing as back as the aching in the wrists from any PS-play/that first bought at Halo.

Dyrwen66

Yeah, I've got tendinitis in my right and left forearms from typing and playing games on PC for the past decade... God it's been a decade or more? I'm waiting on carpal tunnel, but I think it's namely still tendinitis if my last checkup was any indication. Kind of difficult to get around it, but I suppose I just try to take breaks when I can and live through it. It usually only acts up when I don't use the computer, so goes the cycle of pain.

Mister_Pibbles

Between my piano playing and the amount of time I spend on the computer, my doctor's always warning me I'm putting my wrists through hell. The biggest problem is repetition of motion - like typing and button mashing - without breaks in between. If you need to type a lot during the day, learn to let your fingers do all of the work instead of the wrist; same applies for piano when possible. You'll save yourself a lot of pain in the long run.

leaf

My right wrist gets sore easily if I'm on too much, which is hard to avoid since I'm in fine arts, and draw/paint/do everything there with my right hand, and then I go to work where it's data entry for another 5 hours.

I basically stopped playing CSS and bf2/2142, fps games tend to make it worse, and I quit playing Ragnarok Online (awful game if you have a tendancy for tendonitis)

Eve Online seems to be the only game that's passive enough that I can manage to play, since it doesn't require diablo-esq clicking on enemies for attacking and whatnot. That and I make sure to type properly, it's only prolonged mouse-use that inflames it (thus cutting out FPS games)

Also, been gaming for as long as I can remember when I was young, it's only since I was 14 (22 now), that I started pc gaming, and discovered CS, which is the main cause for me.

taliosfalcon

i'm typically in front of a computer, typing or playing games for 12 hours or so every day barring weekends. My left wrist used to get really sore to the point where I'd have to take breaks every 30 minutes or so and it hurt so much/was so weak I couldn't even lift up my jacket with that hand when I was having one of the bad bouts. I never bothered going to a doctor because I figured they'd just tell me to stop using computers so much so i don't know exactly what it was, but on a friends reccomendation I bought a powerball gyroscope, not thinking it would do any good. After using that for a month or so for 5 minutes a day every second day my wrist was completely fine, and i still use it semi-regularly and havent had any trouble in a year or so.

Black Ice

I'll be straight forward, this is kind of frightening that virtually every single poster in this topic has a problem like tendinitis.

What if you game a lot, but your wrists never get sore? I can type over 100 words a minute - I've been able to since I was about 11 - but I use good technique and only my fingers when I type.

I play video games about as much as I can, but it isn't too much nowadays with school, sports, social life, etc.

I used to play them a lot though, primarily on consoles. I've played a lot of Playstation 2 games in the past 5 years or so, and before that I played a few computer games heavily, particularly Delta Force Black Hawk Down. Now the only computer games I play are Battlefield 2 and Half-Life 2 mods, and I never feel any soreness or irritability when playing them.

Is it still a possibility for someone like me to develop a problem? When I do play games it's normally for an extended period of time, about 2-3 hours straight (Zelda, for instance), no break.

The only time I can remember I truly did get sore from a video game (other than Mega Man X3 a few days ago) was from the original SSX on the PS2. I would literally have to stop playing because my left thumb became so sore from using the D-pad to enter the proper combination to pull off tricks, and no other game has done that to my recollection.

(I feel almost like this should go to H/A, but I meant for this topic to originally be a poll for G&T people, but not too many people have responded..regardless I wanted to ask that question)

DraXXXen

I had alot of trouble with using a regular mouse after a few years of computer work, until I found out about these vertical mice.

http://www.evoluent.com/vm3.html

Been using it for a few weeks now and thus far the comfort is very noticible, much more of a relaxed position for your hand to be in and it does not take long to get used to (though I still use a regular mouse and tablet for any major photoshop work). Cost is a bit much, around $70, but I figure its my health and job comfort so one should not complain about costs (worth it).

Brodo Faggins

Guitar Hero 2 made my left wrist incredibly sore. My forearms have gotten more ripped though, hilariously enough.

BlazeHedgehog

Is it just me, or do newer game consoles promote Carpal Tunnel even more? It "flares up" in my right wrist from time to time, aching and tingling now and again. But more often than not, what causes it to happen isn't so much typing.

It's extended use of the Xbox 360 and the DS Lite. Both seem to cause it way more than using the computer does. Often times I will have to severely cut back on gaming with the 360 and the DS to allow it to go away before resuming.

This doesn't happen with the Playstation 2 or Gamecube, though. Just the 360 and DS. It's rather annoying.

Captain K

Black Ice wrote: »

I'll be straight forward, this is kind of frightening that virtually every single poster in this topic has a problem like tendinitis.

I don't think it's too frightening--the topic's been up for 18+ hours, long enough for just about all the forum regulars to have seen it, and you've only got a dozen or so people responding with their own anecdotes. That's actually pretty encouraging to me.

leaf

Black Ice wrote: »

Is it still a possibility for someone like me to develop a problem? When I do play games it's normally for an extended period of time, about 2-3 hours straight (Zelda, for instance), no break.

Doesn't matter how old you are, my ex was four years younger than me and had horrendous wrists, mostly from her single-fingered typing, she was pretty prolific on forums and whatever.

Basically yes, it just depends on your usage. If you feel slight tingling or a constant throbbing, even mild, that's a pretty decent warning sign to scale back, because "staying the course" is only going to make it worse.

Morninglord

Make sure you stretch and rotate your wrists before things like this, and always take breaks. I get it from playing 3d fighters at arcades, especially one that require a wave dash, which is a forward, nothing, down, down forward, forward ~ repeat. So I stopped playing those characters and stopped trying to be good with them, and picked a much easier character. I barely get it at all now, usually only when practising at home for hours. I also take frequent breaks at the arcade, and really should when playing at home.
But I first got mine from practising writing japanese kanji for a japanese course. Beware the kanji.

Hey, you guys made me read up:

"There is little clinical data to prove whether repetitive and forceful movements of the hand and wrist during work or leisure activities can cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Repeated motions performed in the course of normal work or other daily activities can result in repetitive motion disorders such as bursitis and tendonitis. Writer's cramp - a condition in which a lack of fine motor skill coordination and ache and pressure in the fingers, wrist, or forearm is brought on by repetitive activity - is not a symptom of carpal tunnel syndrome."

Disenchanter

I spend 8 hours on a computer (and occassionaly a DS) at work, spend another 4-6 hours between my home computer and consoles. The only irregularity that I have seen is that my thumbs have become overly flexible, which I attribute to way too many hours and days using the old brick console controlers and handhelds. People like to try to say the fact that I cannot see more than 3 inches in front of my nose without my glasses to gaming, but I still call BS on that one.

Dog

i had to have my arm amputated from the wrist down (I now wear a powerglove) and the muscles in my back replaced with robotic gears and circuitry, all because of video games!

jclast

If your wrists bother you when you type, pick up an ergonomic keyboard. If you know how to touch type it'll only take about an hour to get used to and your wrists will feel much better during marathon coding / document writing sessions.

Also (and this goes for video games, too) try to take a break every 30 minutes. It doesn't have to be really long; a couple minutes should do.

The only console I've played that doesn't bother my wrists is the Wii because I can have my hands separated. The PS2, despite having an awesome library, gets very little play any more because the controller is just too uncomfortable.

Bouncing_Soul

I think for me my discomfort comes from bad "mousing" posture. At work my wrist is usually bent instead of parallel with the desk which relieves the discomfort. At home my elbow/forearm rests on the arm rest of my chair in the same spot constantly, or if I'm playing a console game in my chair.

DraXXXen wrote: »

I had alot of trouble with using a regular mouse after a few years of computer work, until I found out about these vertical mice.

http://www.evoluent.com/vm3.html

Been using it for a few weeks now and thus far the comfort is very noticible, much more of a relaxed position for your hand to be in and it does not take long to get used to (though I still use a regular mouse and tablet for any major photoshop work). Cost is a bit much, around $70, but I figure its my health and job comfort so one should not complain about costs (worth it).

That looks interesting, I might try that out.

Helo

Read a news article about this today, take it as you will, i'm not sure how they determined that the RSI cases were due to excessive gaming:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/02/ngames02.xml

Shurakai

I get muscle degeneration in my upper arms more than anything else. I need to work out once and awhile to balance it out or else it just gets really annoying and painful.