Page 18-Tuesday, May 20, 1980-The Michigan Daily
Risks for working
wrists under study
(continued from Page 3) because the workers return to their old
repetitive hand motions, such as jobs once they have been cured and of-
upholstery sewing and packaging. ten develop the syndrome again.
Field workers use a movie camera and Armstrong and his colleagues con-
electromyography (attachment of elec- centrate instead on changing the work
trodes to the forearm) to compare wrist environment so workers will nothavto
movements of diseased and healthy use a flexed or extended wrist. "We
employees and monitor electrical im- have an effort going now on how to
pulses from their fingers. reduce musculoskeletal injuries in in-
In addition to factory work, other jobs dustry by changing plant design," e*-
which can give rise to carpal tunnel plained engineering Prof. Don Chaffin
syndrome are typing, housekeeping, of the, University's Center for
waitressing, gardening, ,and playing Erkonomics. "We hope that through
musical instruments, especially course work we can teach the results
stringed instruments such as violin and (of the study) to future engineers so
cello. they san design systems that will void
According to Armstrong, the results injury-producing stress."
of his testing seem to indicate that there One finding of the study, which has
is a direct relationship between been continuing since,1976, is that more
repeated forceful wrist exertions and " women than mrien complain of this oc-
carpal tunnel syndrome, especially cupational, hazard. Armstrong gave
when the wrist is flexed or extended. several possile explanations for this:
ARMSTRONG ADDED that medical since womens wrists, on the average,
science has come up with few effective are smaller, there may be more
cures for the disease. "Medical treat- pressure placed on the median nerve;
ment using steroids or 'anti-inflam- also, since women retain more fluid
matory'drugs gives some relief," he than men, this could be an additional
said. "In advanced cases, treatment source of pressure.
involves cutting some wrist ligaments Armstrong added that "Our 'oc-
to open the carpal tunnel." He said that cupational' approach won't eradicate
these treatments are often unsuccessful all cases of the disease, but we do feel
we could substantially reduce the num-
ber of occupationally induced cases."
He estimated that the study would take
"at least another five years to com-
SC A E pete."
"Every time we find the answer to
"Sonics Rendezvousone question, it raises ten other
questions for us to look at," Armstrong
remarked.
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Pachydern predicament AP Photo
Senator H. John Heinz III (R-Ill.) ducks under a large brass elephant yester-
day at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington. The
GOP called a news conference on the housing crisis and caused a small
problem of their own by placing the speakers tables too close to their party
symbol.
Soviet and French
leaders hold summit

WARSAW, Poland (AP) - French
President Valery Giscard d'Estaing
held an unheralded, lightning summit
yesterday with Soviet President Leonid
Brezhnev that miffed some French
allies and produced no visible progress
and
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toward a politicil settlement of the
Afghanistan problem. A French
spokesman said their positions
"remain far apart."
Diplomatic observers here and in
Western Europe said France's
agreement to the summit at all
represented a diplomatic success for
the Soviet Union. They said the meeting
allowed the Soviets to resume summit-
level contacts with the West without
changing its position on Afghanistan.
THE INFLUENTIAL Paris
newspaper Le Monde, in a front-page
editorial, said the summit served Soviet
interests alone. Dialogue is a legitimate
concern, Le Monde said, "but a
dialogue of the deaf remains a dialogue
of the deaf."
In what may have been an attempt to
mend some fences with Washington,
Giscard d'Estaing made a strong
statement to Brezhnev seeking world-
wide efforts to gain the release of the 53
Americans held hostages in Iran since
Nov. 4.

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