I’ve experienced wrist pains lately probably due to the incorrect position of my hands when using my laptop. An officemate informed me that a cyst developed in his wrist because of it. Yikes! He had an operation to have it removed because it caused him a great deal of pain and was growing by the minute. I was alarmed by this so I did a quick research through Google.

The condition is called a Ganglion cyst. Removing it doesn’t really prevent it from coming back. Here’s what I found during my research.

“A Ganglion Cyst is a bump or mass that forms under the skin. Most commonly, ganglions are seen on the wrist (usually the back side) and fingers, but they can also develop on the shoulder, elbow, ankle and knee. These form when tissues surrounding certain joints become inflamed and swell up with lubricating fluid. They can increase in size when the tissue is irritated and often can “disappear” spontaneously. These masses or cysts appear to grow sometimes but they are not tumours or cancerous.

This condition is common in people who bowl or who play handball, raquetball, squash, or tennis. Runners and athletes who jump, ski, or play contact sports often develop foot ganglions.”

It wasn’t mentioned in the article but I think those who use the keyboard the entire day should also be careful. A few people in the office already have these cysts in their wrists. Just remember to do wrist exercises every hour or so. You don’t want to undergo surgery because of this.