Even ancient Egyptian scribes suffered repetitive motion injuries

While workers in some occupations today suffer from repetitive motion injuries, such occupational hazards are actually nothing new — ancient Egyptian scribes suffered from degenerative physical changes attributed to their job tasks, says a recent study published in Scientific Reports. 

The study said the scribes – Egyptian men in the third millennium B.C. — sat cross-legged or in a kneeling position for extended periods and that the repetitive tasks related to writing and the “adjusting of the rush pens during scribal activity” caused an “extreme overloading of the jaw, neck and shoulder regions.” 

The degeneration to jaw joints could have been due to the scribes chewing the ends of writing instruments, and thumb degeneration might have been due to their “repeatedly pinching their pens,” the study states.

The study’s authors, who examined the skeletal remains of 69 adult men, 30 of whom worked as scribes, found that degenerative joint damage was more prevalent among the scribes compared with those who worked in other jobs.

The researchers also noted that statues and wall decorations found inside Egyptian tombs depict scribes sitting in various improper positions while working – corroborating the findings.