Carpal Tunnel
You're working at your desk, trying to ignore the tingling or numbness you've had for months in your hand and wrist. Suddenly, a sharp, piercing pain shoots through the wrist and up your arm. Just a passing cramp? More likely you have carpal tunnel syndrome, a painful progressive condition caused by compression of a key nerve in the wrist.
What is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the median nerve, which runs from the forearm into the hand, becomes pressed or squeezed at the wrist. Sometimes, thickening from irritated tendons or other swelling narrows the tunnel and causes the median nerve to be compressed. The result may be pain, weakness, or numbness in the hand and wrist. Although painful sensations may indicate other conditions, carpal tunnel syndrome is the most common and widely known of the entrapment neuropathies in which the body's peripheral nerves are compressed or traumatized.What are the symptoms of carpal tunnel?
Symptoms usually start gradually, with frequent burning, tingling, or itching numbness in the palm of the hand and the fingers, especially the thumb and the index and middle fingers. Some carpal tunnel sufferers say their fingers feel useless and swollen, even though little or no swelling is apparent. The symptoms often first appear in one or both hands during the night, since many people sleep with flexed wrists. A person with carpal tunnel syndrome may wake up feeling the need to "shake out" the hand or wrist. As symptoms worsen, people might feel tingling during the day. Decreased grip strength may make it difficult to form a fist, grasp small objects, or perform other manual tasks. In chronic and/or untreated cases, the muscles at the base of the thumb may waste away. Some people are unable to tell between hot and cold by touch.
What are the causes of carpal tunnel?
Carpal tunnel syndrome is often the result of a combination of factors that increase pressure on the median nerve and tendons in the carpal tunnel, rather than a problem with the nerve itself. Contributing factors include trauma or injury to the wrist that cause swelling (such as sprain or fracture), rheumatoid arthritis, mechanical problems in the wrist joint, work stress, repeated use of vibrating hand tools, fluid retention during pregnancy or menopause; or the development of a cyst or tumor in the canal. In some cases no cause can be identified.
Who is at risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome?
Women are three times more likely than men to develop carpal tunnel syndrome, perhaps because the carpal tunnel itself may be smaller in women than in men. The dominant hand is usually affected first and produces the most severe pain. Persons with diabetes or other metabolic disorders that directly affect the body's nerves and make them more susceptible to compression are also at high risk. Carpal tunnel syndrome usually occurs only in adults.
The risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome is not confined to people in a single industry or job, but is especially common in people that do a lot of typing and those performing assembly line work, including manufacturing, sewing, cleaning, and packing. In fact, carpal tunnel syndrome is three times more common among assemblers than among data-entry personnel. During 1998, an estimated three of every 10,000 workers lost time from work because of carpal tunnel syndrome. Half of these workers missed more than 10 days of work. The average lifetime cost of carpal tunnel syndrome, including medical bills and lost time from work, is estimated to be about $30,000 for each injured worker.
Carpal Tunnel Treatment VS Carpal Tunnel Surgery
Before you resort to carpal tunnel surgery, make sure you have your problem examined by our office. It is very common to have pressure on the median nerve from a variety of areas, not just the carpal tunnel. We have had tremendous results with carpal tunnel treatment doing carpal releases and muscle stripping to take pressure off of the nerve. Before you submit yourself to surgery or taking a long regimen of drugs, give our office a call. We've helped many of our patients that have not responded to other treatments.
Success Story
William played the piano at his church. He reported weakness in his right hand that was becoming worse over the course of 5 months. We performed a complete history and examination and diagnosed his condition as carpal tunnel syndrome with associated muscle spasming of the pronator teres muscle. We started him on a treatment plan consisting of stretches, carpal adjustment, muscle stimulation and muscle stripping. At the one month re-evaluation, William rated himself 90% better.
Auto & Work Injury Center has success stories like this happen every day. Call our office to schedule an appointment for an evaluation so you can start feeling better today 503-282-4878.