WHAT IS A REPETITIVE STRESS INJURY (RSI)?

An RSI is an injury that occurs with overuse. When muscles have to do the same job over and over, the area can become irritated and then inflamed. The body's response to this inflammation is to lay down some scar tissue, to try and stabilize the area. Once this begins to happen an ongoing cycle begins that leads to a worsening of the condition. This cycle gets harder to break the longer it continues, because of the changes that have occurred in the tissues.

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The incidence of RSI's is skyrocketing yearly. Recently, the health care costs in the North America related to RSI's surpassed low back pain as the largest health care expenditure.

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Some common examples of RSI's are:

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• Golfers Elbow (Tendonitis) -Carpal Tunnel Syndrome -Thoracic Outlet Syndrome -Rotator Cuff Syndrome (Shoulder Tendonitis)

• Shin Splints

• IT Band Syndrome

• Plantar Fasciitis

• Chronic Neck or Back Pain may also be the result of RSI’s

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Active Release Techniques treatment is an important part of our treatment for these common RSI’s.