For the physical therapy patient who has been diagnosed with repetitive stress injury or RSI, a course of physical therapy centered on the wrists and hands is important. The therapist devises a treatment plan that targets the patient's symptoms so she can regain full strength and use of her wrists and hands. Treating RSI early can help the patient avoid developing full-blown carpal tunnel syndrome.
Function
Hand and wrist strengthening exercises are intended to help increase the strength in both the hands and wrists, especially when you're at risk of developing repetitive stress injuries or RSI. If your doctor or physical therapist prescribe exercises for your wrists or hands, make sure you don't make yourself hurt or make any pain you already have any worse.
RSI occurs when you repeatedly perform the same moves with your wrist or hands, as in using a computer all day long or scanning merchandise, using the same movements. These repeated movements begin to stress your wrist or hand, causing pain and possibly swelling of the tendons involved.
Considerations
When you perform your exercises, take care to do them in the way your therapist has shown you. Don't move too fast and don't jerk your hands. If you're using anything as a weight, make sure it isn't too heavy.
Your therapist should give you exercises that first help you to strengthen your wrists and hands. He'll start with the easiest exercises so you can ease into your strengthening program. Once an exercise is too easy for you to do, you can add an exercise with greater difficulty as you continue using the basic exercise. Do your exercises on alternate days so your wrist and hand muscles have enough time to recover before you exercise them again.
Significance
Wrist and hand strengthening exercises are important in the event that you've begun to experience pain or weakness from RSI. Untreated RSI can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. Treating your RSI is important so your condition doesn't progress into carpal tunnel syndrome and so that you can avoid carpal tunnel release surgery.
If your doctor diagnoses RSI and sends you to a physiotherapist, the exercises your therapist prescribes are important in treating your condition.
Benefits
Hand and wrist strengthening exercises help you to regain muscle strength so you can continue work and recreational activities if RSI has begun to weaken the tendons and muscles. If you have been diagnosed with RSI or carpal tunnel syndrome, these exercises may delay the need for surgery in the future.
Your exercises, if performed correctly, can also teach you how to use the muscles in your wrists and hands properly.
Warning
If left untreated, RSI or carpal tunnel syndrome can lead to disability. For this reason it is vital to receive the correct diagnosis and treatment. Physical therapy, including the wrist and hand strengthening exercises, can help prevent consequences such as loss of sensation in the hands, fingers, thumbs and wrists or atrophy of the muscles at the base of the thumb.
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