Data from a US health survey adds to evidence that carpal tunnel syndrome is often work-related, arising from repetitive motions of the hand and wrist, like typing on a keyboard.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the new CTS data from the annual National Health Interview Survey on Friday.

They survey found that in 2010, 69.4 percent of employed adults with carpal tunnel syndrome were told by a doctor or other health professional the condition was work-related. Men were less likely than women to have work-related carpal tunnel syndrome.

Just last week the CDC released separate data that showed an estimated 3.1 percent of employed adults aged 18–64 years had been diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome in the past 12 months.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is pressure on the nerve in the wrist that supplies feeling and movement to parts of the hand. It can lead to numbness, tingling, weakness, or muscle damage in the hand and fingers.

This past May Susan Burt, from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, authored a study published by the journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine that examined the relationship between workplace physical factors, particularly hand activity level and forceful exertion and carpal tunnel syndrome.

“CTS is among the greatest driver of workers' compensation costs, lost time, lost productivity and disability,” wrote Burt. “Many of these disorders could be prevented by identifying hazardous jobs and redesigning job tasks, tools and workstations to reduce the physical stressors.”

The National Health Interview Survey has monitored the health of Americans since 1957. NHIS data on a broad range of health topics are collected through personal household interviews.