# Nail gun shock injuries



## Marvin Gardens

I have never seen RSI (repetitive stress injuries) with nail guns. I have used one for many years. In fact I don't remember how to drive a nail with a hammer.

The biggest injuries are from accidental firing of the gun and a nail flying somewhere. As a retired paramedic I used to see lots of these.

Most people don't use them enough to cause RSI. You have to understand that people that work in the building trades are not complainers. If they have an injury they just deal with it. If they get some sort of RSI they adjust how they are doing things so that it doesn't continue.

Back when I used a hammer all day long I used to get tennis elbow. I just learned to use my other hand and am quite ambidextrous. My tennis elbow went away and then I reverted back to my other hand.

The shock of a nail gun is not all that bad unless you hit a knot. Then there is some recoil that can be a bit unpleasant.

Most RSI injuries are tendonitis like tennis elbow, or sore knees, and strained backs. I think that nail guns actually reduce RSI injuries.

I can see carpal tunnel syndrome happening if the operator hangs on too tight. When I was falling timber we called it white knuckle syndrome. Grabbing on too hard would reduce blood flow and hands would turn white.

Then again I have always been careful because of my medical background and see a problem before it develops and deals with it, so maybe I am not the person to be talking to.


----------



## Termite

Moved this to the safety subforum since it is safety-related.

I've never had or seen any repetitive stress injury from a nail gun, and I've used them quite a bit.

I have had issues with using impact guns and impact drivers for a long time. They make my hands tingle and it won't go away for weeks after driving a few dozen screws or bolts. Probably vibration-related.


----------



## Marvin Gardens

thekctermite said:


> Moved this to the safety subforum since it is safety-related.
> 
> I've never had or seen any repetitive stress injury from a nail gun, and I've used them quite a bit.
> 
> I have had issues with using impact guns and impact drivers for a long time. They make my hands tingle and it won't go away for weeks after driving a few dozen screws or bolts. Probably vibration-related.


Yea, carpal tunnel. Don't let it get to that point anymore now. Do you understand? :wink:

I know I'm not your mother but this is serious and can lay you up for months and could even end your building career.


----------



## bjbatlanta

I left a reply at the "tool" post and "jogr" left a reply after mine that this is may get a better response at Contractor Talk, as it's geared toward pro's rather than DIY'ers. Makes sense. Best of luck with your survey "dsawn388".


----------



## gabrieljosh

*Just wanna share this...*

Repetitive stress injuries can come from many causes. Other factors should also be considered as contributing to stress in all cases. Being overweight or pregnant or having high stress levels in general can certainly take a toll on certain joints. Once you have been diagnosed with repetitive stress injury, all of these factors must be taken into consideration before the most effective course of treatment can be prescribed by your doctor.


----------



## Alskiz4691

dswan388 said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> I'm new to the forum but had a few questions for everyone regarding nail guns and shock related injuries.
> 
> I'm a student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and for one of my grad classes we are applying axiomatic design to manufacturing tools and processes to improve them (don't worry, I don't know what axiomatic design is either ) . Our group decided to look into nail guns and the possibility of creating some kind of shock absorbing system to help eliminate shock related injury.
> 
> I have very little experience with nail guns (especially over long periods of time) and wanted to ask a more experienced group about these particular injuries. Would you say there is a high risk in frequent nail gun users to develop repetitive strain injury or shock injury due to the constant impact of the nail gun? What sort of injuries have you had yourself? Do you feel tingling in your arm after a day’s worth of nailing? Any information you can provide would be extremely helpful to our project. I appreciate and anxiously await your replies.
> 
> -Dan


 hello I understand how long ago this thread was made but feel its important to comment as I recently have hurt my shoulder working at a pallet company. It is a production job so for 9.5 hrs a day I have been using a pneumatic nail gun for the past six + months shooting it as fast as I can. One day I noticed my shoulder was a bit sore and quite weak. Then I got home and the pain was unbearable. The next morning my entire arm was completely numb and tingling. Filed workmans comp and since nothing is broken they haven't really been much help aside from the dr Bills. The resting pain has gotten better but anytime I use the arm even sweeping the floor with a broom the pain returns almost immediately. I was training a new guy and as a reaction I did it one time to show him how and it immediately felt like I got shot in my arm with a real gun. I don't think I will be able to work any trades jobs now and will most likely struggle with it for the rest of my life. I'm 31. Hope there is a product devolped to help others with the same situation as it is quite depressing and has been a nightmare. Another unfortunate detail is since I still have full movement and rotation I get the feeling the physical therapy and doctors don't believe me how bad it is. They just keep saying your doing great and will be back at it in no time. Pulling some tiny rubber bands is a bit different than working hard as I used to for 9.5+ hrs.


----------



## Texican57

Have you tried cortisone injections in your shoulder?

Physical therapy and strengthening the muscles in your shoulders would help.


----------



## Alskiz4691

Texican57 said:


> Have you tried cortisone injections in your shoulder?
> 
> Physical therapy and strengthening the muscles in your shoulders would help.


Thank you for the reply. I didn't expect anyone to follow up. More so posted just for the off chance someone else who has experienced something similar reads it and knows they are not alone. This happened on the 14th of april so I'm still learning, researching and weighing my options. My last pt appointment is next friday after tomorrow. I have been going every Monday Wednesday and Friday since the 14th. I have not considered or even been reccomended the cortisone shots yet as I was hoping it would be better by now and the work mans comp dr keeps telling me il be fine since I can pull the rubber bands for a few minutes vs actually having to do repetitive tasks for 9.5 hrs. It's such a odd injury that doesn't seem to be very well known about at least at the "dr" they sent me to. I don't think there are many jobs who are rapidly firing a nail gun quite as often and fast as I was. I learned to rapid fire it by letting it bounce along (very foolish and dangerous.) Referring to the dry waller and roofer who posted having no issues. It's honestly more like a walk in clinic than a actual dr. I'm afraid they are underestimating my injury. I will ask them about it tomorrow though and reiterate that I think it's worse than they think. For some reason the pain gets even worse after a day of sweeping rather than during. (I'm on light duty since the injury.) The pt has helped with the resting pain but not with the pain that comes after the light duty working. I was off for a week (no pay) but they told me since my job has light duty work and it's not broken and no movement issues I have to go back or deal with going broke (financially) basically. Thanks for your suggestion I will ask them about the cortisone shots.


----------



## Texican57

The main concern with the cortisone shots is they spike your blood sugar levels.

If you are diabetic or even pre-diabetic the shots may not be a good idea.

Anti-inflammatory medications can also help.

I'm willing to bet the clinic and the company are trying to stay away from medications.

If meds are given it changes the report they have to send to OHSA.


----------



## mark sr

Marvin Gardens said:


> Back when I used a hammer all day long I used to get tennis elbow. I just learned to use my other hand and am quite ambidextrous. My tennis elbow went away and then I reverted back to my other hand.


Before I retired I also was plagued with tennis elbow. With paint brushes I had to go to a smaller size [we used 6" brushes as an apprentice]. Using a hammer only took a half hour, switching hands got the same result but the only relief was to quit for an hour or so. I've not had any tennis elbow [or shoulder] issues with nail guns.

I've had cortisone shots before but they only gave me temporary relief ..... but I've never been one to lay around if I felt good enough to do something so I probably didn't rest as much as I should.


----------



## wrangler

20 years ago I was experiencing tennis elbow so severe that I couldn't sleep at night. I mentioned it to my dad and he suggested I try glucosamine chondroitin w/MSM as it had helped him. I didn't put much faith in a supplement, but my dad was not one to recommend something he didn't have faith in. It took about three weeks to build up in my system, but surprisingly ended my pain. What surprised me the most was that a chronic lower back pain I had resigned myself to living with also disappeared. I have since recommended it to others who have actually contacted me later to thank me, including an older lady who told me she was fearing an upcoming knee surgery. After about a month she was pain free, got rid of cane and cancelled her surgery. 
It may not work for everyone or every pain, but I think it's definitely worth a try. As for the source, I was just using a Walmart brand ( nature valley I think?) but in the past couple of decades there have been many different companies and versions of the supplement.


----------

