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Got 'BlackBerry Thumb'? Rest UR digits

By
Real Estate Sales Representative with AgentOwned Realty

I have been self diagnosed with Blackberry Thumb. All day today I have had a wierd sensation when trying to email or text my left thumb when trying to text goes into a violent shake, after researching online it turns out this is a very common problem.  I am posting an article that I found on CNET news. 

Got 'BlackBerry Thumb'? Rest UR digits:photo credit : RIM

 Anyone who sits in front of a computer all day has probably had a wrist twitch-inspired "maybe I have Carpal Tunnel" moment.

Well, worry-prone technophiles, here's another malady to add to your list of concerns: BlackBerry Thumb, a trendy new repetitive-stress injury said to afflict those who excessively use their thumbs to pound out e-mails and text messages on tiny handheld keyboards.

According to the Newark Star Ledger, as the sizes and prices of handheld typing devices continue to shrink, some U.S. doctors and physical therapists are urging consumers to treat their on-the-go text messaging as they would any physical workout.

Yep, that means pre-text stretching to prevent swollen thumb tendons and cramped and stiff fingers, they say. Thumb-stabilizer splints may help assuage this Carpal Tunnel-type ailment, which doctors also treat with anti-inflammatory medicine and physical therapy.

"If I tell you to run a marathon and you're not in shape for it, you'd think I'm crazy," says Jules Steimnitz, a San Francisco psychiatrist who treats repetitive stress injuries. But when it comes to text messaging, "people don't know what they can and can't do. People don't think of it as an activity using the muscles and tendons and ligaments."

U.S. doctors' warnings come three years after the British Chiropractic Association said regular text messaging could cause RSI.

But while personal accounts of BlackBerry Thumb can be handily found on the Internet, some RSI watchersare quick to caution that the condition is far from widespread and is likely no worse than the "Nintendo Thumb" of the '90s.  

Story by: Leslie Katz, senior editor of CNET's Crave, covers gadgets, games, and most other digital distractions.

Comments (5)

Denise Gray
Realty World Alliance - Wichita, KS
Realtor SRES, Wichita Kansas Homes

The BlackBerry doesn't seem to bother my thumbs. I think I've built up my thumb muscles playing video games for years.

Mar 05, 2009 12:28 PM
Mark Charter
Charter House Real Estate - Ankeny, IA

My fingers hurt just reading this. Good stuff!

Mar 05, 2009 12:40 PM
Mark Charter
Charter House Real Estate - Ankeny, IA

My fingers hurt just reading this. Good stuff!

Mar 05, 2009 12:40 PM
Liz Loadholt
Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC - Mount Pleasant, SC
Realtor--Broker-in-charge - Trainer--Relocation Director Covering SC

Rick --- thank goodness I haven't used my blackberry that much.

Mama Liz's Signature

Mar 09, 2009 02:58 AM
Lisa Dunahoe
AgentOwned Realty - Mount Pleasant, SC
"The Time is now!"

I miss my treo...not sure how similar it is to a blackberry...

May 28, 2009 07:17 AM