Government and public statistics
Office Ergonomics - Wrist Rests
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), n.d.
Read the originalRead on October 16, 2026
- What it is
- A workplace health and safety guide from Canada's national occupational health and safety centre, answering whether wrist rests work, how to position them and why there is debate about them. It follows the same advice as the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's workstation guidance on the pad position.
- How much weight it carries
- Published by a federal health and safety agency and reviewed for its own guidance. It describes the debate over wrist rests rather than a controlled trial, so it sets out practice and mechanism rather than measured effects on symptoms.
Facts taken from this source
- CCOHS advises that your hands should move freely and be lifted above the wrist or palm rest while you type.
“Your hands should move freely and be elevated above the wrist/palm rest while typing.” (Wrist rests: how to use them)
- CCOHS says evidence shows that wrist rests alleviate tension in the neck and shoulders, and adds that both views on wrist rests can be challenged.
“evidence shows that wrist rests alleviate tension in the neck and shoulders. Both views can be challenged.” (Do wrist rests work?)
- CCOHS advises that when you rest on a wrist rest, the pad should contact the heel or palm of the hand, not the wrist.
“When resting, the pad should contact the heel or palm of your hand, not your wrist.” (Wrist rests: how to use them)
- CCOHS says that leaning the wrists on a wrist rest or the edge of the desk for long periods can put a lot of pressure on the carpal tunnel area, and that this pressure may contribute to carpal tunnel syndrome.
“leaning the wrists on a wrist rest or the edge of the desk for long periods can put a lot of pressure on the carpal tunnel area in the wrist” (Do wrist rests work?)