Will an Ergonomic Mouse Solve my Aches and Pains?

Every day we get the opportunity to talk to many of our customers about their unique problems or aches and pains. Being able to discuss their symptoms, work requirements and their current setup helps guide any recommendations we make. But something we have noticed over the years, is that while most customers will be able to quickly solve their aches and pains with their new ergonomic mouse or chair or standing desk, there are some that still continue to experience discomfort despite introducing new ergonomic equipment.

If you have lower back pain and you are sitting on a cruddy old chair with no back support, then changing over to an ergonomic chair is quickly going to help solve your problem. Similarly, if you have a sore neck and shoulder because your arm is outstretched and too far away from your body when operating your mouse, then changing to an ergonomic keyboard and correcting that horrible posture will definitely help. But, if you have wrist and hand pain, simply introducing an ergonomic mouse may not completely solve your problem. See our hands and wrists are quite complicated. This is largely because the muscles in our hands are very small and the smaller a muscle is, the easier it can get fatigued and potentially injured.

Recovery times for hand injuries are also much longer then say a hamstring strain or calf strain. When we have an injury to our hands, we tend not to follow the best advice and rest. We continue to operate a computer and perform repetitive tasks that often exacerbate the pain and can potentially make the condition worse. If you hurt your ankle, you know that continuing to walk on it won't help in the recovery, yet we tend to ignore this common fact when it comes to hand injuries. Most people don't rest their hands enough to allow for the body to naturally repair the tissue and the normal inflammatory response to occur.

So will getting an ergonomic mouse solve you wrist or hand aches and pains? The answer is most likely. Most aches and pains that people experience in their hands and wrists can be controlled and resolved with modification of their working postures through an ergonomic mouse. However, there are some people that might not get much relief from an ergonomic mouse, should their aches and pains be attributed to an underlying hand or wrist injury. If you are continuing to experience aches or pains, after changing to an ergonomic mouse, we would strongly recommend you consult with your GP as you may require further investigations or a referral to a hand therapist.