Work Place Injury Prevention

September 8, 2019 Mom MD Hawaii

This article goes over exercises and strategies for work place injury prevention. Written by 2 amazing licensed physical therapists, Bobby Tagawa and Bernie Soriano from Central Oahu PT Specialists. See what musculoskeletal injuries are common and their risk factors. Identify the inflexibility and weakness that contributes. Get a set of exercises to be done daily for work place injury prevention.

Outline

Common MSK Disorders Associated with Overuse
Risk Factors associated with MSK Disorders
Common Impairments/Problems contributing repetitive overuse positions/movements
- Inflexibility
- Weakness
Dynamic/Functional vs Static/Uniplanar Exercises
Video Exercises: Combine movements, multiple muscles addressed

Common Overuse Musculoskeletal Injuries

Carpal Tunnel
Mechanical Neck Pain with or without Radiculopathy
Shoulder Impingement
Frozen Shoulder
Lateral Epicondylitis “Tennis Elbow”
Mechanical Low Back Pain with or without Radiculopathy or Sciatica
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome
Plantar Fasciitis
Achilles Tendonitis

General Risk Factors for Musculoskeletal Conditions/Injuries

Previous injury
Poor postural awareness/habituated incorrect static and dynamic ergonomics
Decreased strength/stability
Poor mobility/flexibility
Abnormal/inefficient motor firing patterns of movement

General Impairments Associated with Common Musculoskeletal Dysfunction

Inflexibility/Tightness
- Wrist Flexors- Muscles Palm Surface of Forearm
- Pectoralis Major/Minor- Chest Muscles
- Upper Cervical Spine- Suboccipital Muscles
- Rectus Abdominis- Six pack muscles
- Hip Flexors- Muscles in Front of your Hip
- Piriformis- Deep Hip Rotators (deep buttocks)
- Gastrocnemius- Calf Muscles
- Plantar Fascia- Arch of Foot
Weakness/Poor Motor Control
- Deep Cervical Flexors- Deep Muscles in Neck
- Middle and Lower Trapezius- Shoulder Blade Muscles
- Transverse Abdominis- Deep Abdominal Muscles
- Rotator Cuff- Shoulder Muscles
- Gluteals- Buttocks Muscles

Benefits for Focal Exercises?

Improves energy levels
Elevates mood
Directly linked to brain health and memory
Improve physical dexterity/resilience; i.e., less prone to injury
We tend to hurt ourselves in positions or movement patterns that we don’t train or use often
Improves quality of sleep

EXERCISES: STATIC/Uniplanar vs DYNAMIC/FUNCTIONAL

Current research shows a shift
Traditional: static stretches, long duration holds to improve muscle fiber length
Current: muscles may not be traditionally shortened vs neurologically inhibited
Antagonist strengthening improve “muscle flexibility” in antagonist more than traditional static stretches
Dynamic movements may improve nervous system’s ability to recruit muscles in multiple planes.

Things to Note

These are combined exercises- multiple muscle sites being addressed
BREATHE
Transverse Abdominis and Deep Cervical Flexor contraction
Repeat on both sides
10 reps on each side, 1 sets, holding position for 2-3 seconds, Modify to 5 reps for last 3 exercises
Perform every hr to facilitate neuroplasticity

Exercises

#1 – Squat with Shoulder External Rotation
#2 – Trunk Rotation with Shoulder Horizontal Abduction
#3 – Core Standing Tandem Exercise
#4 – Core Stability with Hip Flexion/Abduction
#5 – Single Arm Bent Over Row
#6 – Squat Press
#7 – Monster Walks with Isometric Neutral Wrist
#8 – Reverse Lunge Hamstring Stretch

Exercises on Youtube Video

Final Thoughts

Get up and move!!!
- Bodies weren’t designed for prolonged static positions
- Try to change positions every 30 min
Posture
- The starting point of all movement – if we start in a good position, higher chance of moving in a good position
Breathe

Thanks for Reading! Hopefully this helps with your work place injury prevention. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments. Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and linked in.