CROSSED LEGS may lead to invertebral DISC SPUR

Taipei:
One thing desk workers shouldn't do is to cross their legs.

That's the warning doctors at the Taipei Medical University-Shuang Ho Hospital sounded on Tuesday after they found crossed-legs made a big spur grow between two invertabral discs.

A spur is a bony projection. When it develops between discs of one's spine, one often feels almost intolerable pain.

Dr Wu Xing-sheng, cheif orthopaedist at Shuang Ho, said he found a 6cm-long spur between the ruptured fifth and sixth invertabral discs in the spine of a laid-off bank clerk, who used to sit with her legs crossed for a long time.

The 33-year-old patient, known only as Ms Chen, was fired earlier this year.

Half a month ago, when she got up to leave her desk at home, Chen felt sharp pain at her waist, left buttock and left leg.

"That's the most intolerable pain I've ever experienced, " she told Dr Wu when she went to Shuang Ho to visit him.

The pain, though mitigated after treatment for a week, did not go away. A magnetic resonance imaging found out she had a large spur.

The rest was easy. Dr Wu operated on her to remove the spur. She stayed in hospital for one day and was released.

How did she get the spur? "She worked the computer in the bank, sitting with her legs crossed for years, " Dr Wu said. She didn't change the habit after she was given the sack.

Aside from doing house chores, Chen did next to nothing at home for three months but sitting at her desk to get online to try to find jobs. " Her one sitting often exceeded three hours," Dr Wu said.

The old habits never died. Chen crossed her legs while using the computer.

"We gave the spur, preserved of coarse, to Ms Chen as a reminder that she has to kick her habit of sitting with legs crossed," Dr Wu said.

He gave similar advice to desk workers.

"When you have lumbago, or backpain, you go see a doctor and take some medicine," Dr Wu went on. "If pain doesn't go away, it may be caused by a spur."

One thing that may help one prevent a spur from growing is not to sit for too long at a stretch. "Don't stand too long, either," Dr Wu warned.

"Remember, " he added, "don't cross your legs!" The orthopaedist added: "Don't sprawl yourself all over a chair, either. You'd better sit tight.

"Don't hunch your back. Don't look at the computer screen long, with your head bowed a little too low."

One more suggestion: one should take a break from desk work from time to time, stand up and walk around.

The exercise keeps the waist muscles strong.

-adapted from The Star newspaper.