Carpal tunnel syndrome is a common cause of wrist and hand pain and similar symptoms, affecting as many as 5% of American adults. While most people associate CTS with repetitive hand and wrist movements, it’s also more common among people with underlying health conditions, including obesity, diabetes, and arthritis.
At Powell Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, Thomas E. Powell, MD, and his team offer a variety of treatments for CTS, including both surgical and nonsurgical therapies. The key to long-term symptom relief is to match the therapy to each person’s unique needs, relieving nerve entrapment and the pain and numbness it can cause.
Your body contains a network of nerves that control movement and provide us with sensation. In your hands, the median nerve is a major conduit for nerve signals that control hand movements and feelings, including sensations of pressure, temperature, and pain.
The median nerve travels down your forearm and into your hand, passing through a tight “tunnel” at the base of each wrist. This tunnel is composed of ligaments, muscles, and bones.
CTS happens when the nerve is pinched or compressed when it passes through this tunnel, causing symptoms in your hands and fingers, such as:
CTS can interfere with your ability to feel objects as well as your ability to perform fine motor tasks, like holding a pencil or buttoning a shirt.
It can also make it difficult to use a keyboard or perform other activities required by your job or hobbies. In fact, many workplace activities or hobbies can lead to CTS, including activities that require repetitive use of your hands, fingers, or wrists.
Without proper treatment, CTS can become progressive, leading to permanent nerve damage and a permanent loss of feeling and function. Fortunately, there are treatments that can help relieve nerve impingement and prevent permanent complications.
Mild CTS may be relieved with noninvasive options to help relieve inflammation or swelling around the median nerve. RICE — rest, ice, compression, and elevation — are often effective in reducing CTS symptoms and improving overall wrist function.
These techniques are often combined with bracing, oral medication, or injections to reduce inflammation around the nerve. For more severe CTS or when conservative options don’t work, we may recommend surgery, particularly when long-term nerve damage is a possibility.
CTS surgery focuses on special techniques to relieve pressure on the median nerve. Sometimes called carpal tunnel release, the surgery uses small incisions in the ligaments comprising the carpal tunnel, widening the tunnel so the nerve can pass through without being compressed or irritated.
Dr. Powell recommends surgery on a patient-by-patient basis following a thorough exam and when other options have proven ineffective. The approach he uses for your CTS treatment depends on your own unique needs, as well as your lifestyle factors, to help you achieve long-term relief.
Following surgery, you wear a cast or splint to support your wrist while it heals. Most patients benefit from physical therapy to help restore normal wrist movement and aid in healing.
Carpal tunnel syndrome might not seem like a big deal, but without proper medical care, it can get worse — and cause permanent disability. To learn how we can help you manage your CTS symptoms and prevent complications, call 205-606-5232 or request an appointment online with Powell Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, today.
