Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Yes you can, any repetitive motion with your hands or fingers can cause it.

The median nerve, this nerve supplies feeling and movement to the thumb and "thumb-side" of the hand.

There are no known treatments to cure Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, but there are many treatments that you can do from home such as ice, rest, (no typing), wrist supports, and massage therapy. These natural carpal tunnel treatments have been proven to bring relief to some individuals suffering from carpal tunnel pain. See your doctor if pain worsens or persists.

That can depend on many factors, like your age, your occupation and hobbies, how long did you have CTS before surgery? How severe of a case did you have? Do you have any other conditions like diabetes etc.? Also can depend on what type of procedure you had, and if work comp was invovled or not an whether or not you have an attorney All these factors have been proven to effect carpal tunnel sugery outcomes. In general recovery can be anywhere to 6 weeks up to several months. I had it done at about age 56 open surgery on both hands at different times, I found that I was using my hands within a week for small things and was just about totally over it within 2 weeks.

Yes, after the operation is performed you will have a splint put on in the operating room. You should keep this on for a few days at least, then if you feel ok, you can take it off and wear a removable brace.

pins and needles are caused by restricting the blood flow to a certain area. Pins and needles take place as the blood flow is restored and the nerves send messages to the brain and spinal cord.

The constant sense of pin and needles in either hand can be the early signs of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Probably not. It really depends on your definition of severe. Some people feel that they have severe symptoms but in reality their NCS (nerve conduction studies) are reported out as mild and a large portion of their symptoms are related to tendonitis etc..However, If you actually have NCS/EMG studies showing severe CTS and symptoms for longer than 3 months, then you will need carpal tunnel release

Talk with your doctor. Some minor surgery is performed under a local anesthetic- you will be awake, but you won't feel anything in your hand. Some surgery is performed under a general anesthetic- you go to sleep.

Physical therapy can work wonders on getting the body to heal. Your insurance should cover the cost of physical therapy for a few weeks. If you cannot get physical therapy, ask your doctor for some recovery recommendations.

Orthopedic hand surgeons account for about 90% of carpal tunnel surgeries. The other 10% or so are done by neurosurgeons and plastic surgeons.

Worker's comp does not pay for mental stress

In the worst case scenario, untreated carpal tunnel syndrome can result in permanent numbness and weakness in the hand.

The numbness shows up in your thumb, index, middle, and half of your ring finger.

The weakness is in your thenar muscles - at the base of the palm side of your thumb.

To see a video showing you where these muscles are and an example of thumb muscle atrophy, see the attached video link.

The surgical treatment of carpel tunnel syndrome is called "Carpal tunnel release". This is a procedure that cuts into the ligament that is putting pressure on the nerve. Surgery is usually successful however the degree of success depends on severity and duration of nerve compression.

It is a "condition" or injury to the median nerve. Many people notice symptoms that come and go depending on useage etc...but they usually still "have" the condition that is effecting the median nerve. Without having certain tests before and after symptoms it would be impossible to say for sure that it is gone or you really ever had the actual syndrome vs hand strain etc.. Some women get CTS with pregnancy due to the increased swelling..but the symptoms usually resolve after delivery and some of them will get it with every pregnancy.

No it will effect the thumb side of your hand up to half of your ring finger. If you are finding tingling numbness or pain in the shoulder and arm you may have to look for problems in the vertebrae.

If you are preparing to undergo carpal tunnel syndrome surgery, a key thing to organize is to have someone with you, not only to assist straight after the surgery, but also for the next few days after.

It means not severe in effect or degree.

If they are the thumb the two fingers next to itand half of the ring finger, (along the length, you may be having trouble with carpal tunnel syndrome. And yes it can be cured. I had the problem in both hands and had them fixed. The procedure involves taking pressure of the nerves in charge of that part of the hand.

Carpel tunnel surgery is usually done by an orthopaedic surgeon.

Other types of surgeons who perform carpal tunnel release surgery:

- plastic surgeon

- general surgeon specializing in hand surgery

These three types of surgeons will often seek additional certification from groups like the American Society for Surgery of the hand (http://www.assh.org). They may have what is called a "Certificate of Additional Qualifications" in hand surgery, or CAQ.

This certification or membership in the ASSH guarantees nothing in terms of quality, but indicates they have spent extra time and effort improving their education in the field of hand surgery and shows some degree of passion for treating your particular problem.

There is no complete cure of carpal tunnel, but you can can prevent it with pain medication, wrist braces, and be gentle towards the area(s) you have carpal tunnel.

Expect to be off work for at least a week.

The main problem with recovery from the CT op is simple tasks such as buttons, dressing, bra straps (if female), typing, lifting any object, etc because it is very difficult to move the hands in certain ways!

Recovery from the General Anesthetic can take a little while.

The pain responds very well to anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS)

For about 6 months after the Op you should be careful about how you move the hand and lift objects, especially things such as a driving where it is easy to forget yourself... If you push it you hand will let you know with some short sharp pain!

I believe so, I have to fly and get my surgery done and was told that I can fly back home the day after.

People with carpal tunnel syndrome initially feel numbness and tingling of the hand in the distribution of the median nerve (the thumb, index, middle and part of the fourth fingers). These sensations are often more pronounced at night and can awaken people from sleep. The reason symptoms are worse at night may be related to the flexed-wrist sleeping position and/or fluid accumulating around the wrist and hand while lying flat Carpal tunnel syndrome may be a temporary condition that completely resolves or it can persist and progress.

Carpal tunnel is actually the name of the area in your wrist where nerves and tendons pass through. If the median nerve gets compressed or pinched in some way, this can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. Typically it can cause night or morning symptoms of numbness and tingling of the hands (first 2 or 3 fingers) and sometimes pain. If it goes on long enough w/o treatment, you can lose muscle tone and grip strength in your hands.