Fact · Accessibility and health
1.74percent
In the 1988 National Health Interview Survey occupational health supplement, 1.74 percent of recent US workers reported carpal tunnel syndrome.
Quote found word for word on the live source, last checked October 19, 2026
In the source's own words
“A nonsignificant difference was observed in the prevalence of self reported CTS in recent workers (1.74%)”
Prevalence and work-relatedness of self-reported carpal tunnel syndrome among U.S. workers, NIOSH, American Journal of Industrial Medicine (NIOSH authors, CDC Stacks), 1995, Abstract.
Open the original- What it measures
- The figure comes from the occupational health supplement to the 1988 National Health Interview Survey. Participants were asked whether they had carpal tunnel syndrome, and the abstract also reports a smaller share with a medically diagnosed case.
- What it does not show
- The figure is self-reported and describes 1988 workers, so it is older than the 2010 and 2015 survey figures. The abstract does not state the period 'recent workers' covers, and it is not comparable with the clinician-diagnosed figures.
In the data
A row of Repetitive Strain Injury Statistics: How Common Is RSI, as NIOSH 1995, US workers 1988, self-report: 1.7 percent.
- Condition
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Who
- Recent US workers, 1988 NHIS occupational health supplement, self-reported
- Period
- Not stated
- Country
- United States
- Year
- 1988
Source
Used to calculate
- In the prevalence of repetitive strain and computer-related pain dataset, the 10 published figures for “Carpal tunnel syndrome” have a median of 4.2 percent, ranging from 1.7 to 34.
- The prevalence of repetitive strain and computer-related pain dataset holds 18 data points, each a published figure traced to its source.
- The prevalence of repetitive strain and computer-related pain dataset draws on 9 distinct sources.