ABSTRACT
The Durham conference and the resulting chapters in this book have explored the relationship between psychosocial factors and the development and treatment of cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs). These disorders have also been described by a wide variety of terms such as ‘work-related musculoskeletal disorders.’ The term ‘CTD’ will be used since it is the most common one, while acknowledging that it implies an oversimplified view of the causation for a diverse group of upper-limb disorders. Several presentations addressed a model by which workstyle factors and psychosocial factors could lead to upperextremity symptoms (Chapters 1, 2, 5, and 6 of this volume). This more comprehensive model provides a more accurate description of the possible causal factors in upper-limb disorders. Some presentations explored possible societal, anthropologic, or economic explanations for when and why individuals with upper-extremity pain symptoms may report them (Chapters 3, 9, and 14). Problems in the traditional medical approach to treating pain were pointed out (Chapter 12) and alternative therapeutic constructs were proposed (Chapter 10).
