Construction industry

Though RSI is commonly perceived to be a recent phenomenon, it is certainly not confined to computer users. In fact most industrial and manufacturing activities throughout the ages, which have involved any form of repetitive movement, have had their own overuse syndromes. Soft tissue injuries to muscles, tendons and nerves in the hand, arms, neck and shoulders are known by a variety of names. Tenosynovitis, for example, is a recognised industrial injury for occupations involving frequent or repeated movements of the hand or wrist and in the late 1990s many thousands of miners and gas workers received compensation for Vibration White Finger.
 
A whole range of popular terms exist to describe musculoskeletal problems associated with particular occupations or tasks; writer's cramp, housemaid's knee, gamekeeper's thumb, tennis elbow and, more recently, pizza-cutter's wrist and Nintendonitis.
 
Workers in the construction industry may face the following risk factors which can contribute to the development of RSI; repetitive actions, awkward postures, gripping and twisting movements and the use of vibrating equipment. The risk may further increase if the work environment is cold or there are insufficient rest breaks.