SUMMARY
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is one of the commonest cumulative traumatic disorder causedby medianus nerve entrapment in carpal tunnel at the wrist. Carpal tunnel syndrome is related to repetitivebiomechanical movement in hand at work. To prevent CTS, workers can do the job conditioning, performstretching exercises, and take frequent rest breaks. Objectives: to evaluate the role of hand exercise to thesymptom of CTS among female garment workers. Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted at3 garment factories in Jakarta 2004, in 10 months period. Respondents were female workers aged 17 to 40,divided into intervention group and control group. The intervention group was trained to do hand exercise,4 times in 4 months. After training, the respondent should practice it regularly, twice a day, and 3 times aweek in the workplace. The hand exercise practice was evaluated by questionnaire and self control card.The symptoms of CTS were assessed using The NIOSH (The National Institute for Occupational Safetyand Health) criteria for CTS. Results: Amount of subject 201 workers were in the intervention group and126 workers were in the control group. After the intervention, the symptom of CTS such as paresthesia andweakness significantly decreased in the intervention group (p=0,0001 and p=0,01), but the symptom ofCTS such as numbness and pain did not significantly decrease (p>0,05). After the intervention, all of theCTS symptom did not decrease in control group (p>0,05) .Conclusions: Doing the hand exercise regularlycan prevent the symptoms of CTS. The employer should support their workers to do the hand exercise inthe workplace. Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) adalah salah satu kelainan akibattrauma berulangyang paling sering terjadi disebabkan terjebaknya saraf medianusdi dalam terowongan karpalpada pergelangan tangan. Carpal tunnel syndrome berhubungan dengan gerakan biomekanik berulangpada tangan saat bekerja. Untuk mencegahCTS, pekerja perlu melakukan penyesuaian tugas, latihan peregangan, dan beristirahatpada jam istirahat.Tujuan penelitian adalah menilai peranan latihan tangan terhadap gejalaCTS pada pekerja garmen perempuan. Metoda penelitian adalahquasi ekperimenyang dilaksanakanpada 3 perusahaan garmendi Jakarta, selama10 bulan.Ada 2 kelompok penelitian yaitu kelompok intervensi dan kelompok kontrol,yang tidak sedang menderitaCTS berdasarkankriteria NIOSH (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health). Pada kelompok intervensi diberikan pelatihan tentang latihan tangan sebanyak4 kali dalam4 bulan. Setelah pelatihan, responden diminta melakukan praktek latihan tangandi tempat kerja secara teratur2 kali sehari,3 kali seminggu. Praktek latihan tangan dievaluasi menggunakan kuesioner dan kartu kontrol diri. Hasil: Responden berjumlah327 orang (kelompok intervensi201 orang dan kelompok kontrol126 orang). Dibandingkan sebelum intervensi, gejalaCTS seperti kesemutan dan kelemahanpada saat setelah intervensi menurun secara bermaknapada kelompok intervensi(p=0,0001 dan p=0,01), namum gejala baal dan nyeri didapatkan tidak berbeda(p>0,05). Pada kelompok kontrol tidak ada penurunan dari semua gejalaCTS (p>0,0Kesimpulan: Latihan tangan secara teratur dapat mencegah terjadinya gejalaCTS. Saran: Pimpinan perusahaan sebaiknya mendukung pekerjanya untuk melakukan latihan tangandi tempat kerja.