Carpal tunnel syndrome is a disease of the wrist. The pain that occurs as a result of compression of the median nerve passing through the canal in the wrist, decreases the quality of life by causing numbness and loss of strength.
What are The Symtoms of The Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?
Numbness and pain that appear in the hands at night and become more severe over time can be bad enough to wake up from sleep and spread to the shoulder. Loss of sensation or electric shock in the palm and fingers, especially in the thumb, index and middle fingers. These pains are relieved by loss of strength in the hand, incontinence, dropping things, and shaking the hand.
Why Does It Happen?
The wrist has a mixed anatomical structure. The nerve-muscle-vascular complex that provides finger and hand movements passes here and disperses. In a nerve that provides the movement and sense of the thumb and index finger, which we call the median nerve, it passes through the middle of the inner face of the wrist and branches into the hand. The top of this nerve is covered with a band with a thick protective feature at the level of the wrist and part of the palm. This protective tape thickens towards middle ages for various reasons and compresses the nerve under it and protects it. The most common cause is tape thickening due to excessive use. It often occurs in people who use typewriters and computers for years working with loads on their wrists, housewives who knit and do intensive housework, and people who use a lot of wrists such as auto repairers. Sometimes this disease may appear as part of another disease.
- Diabetes
- Thyroid Diseases
- Hormonal Disorders
- Rheumatic Diseases
- Like obesity
How is it diagnosed?
The detailed history of the complaints is made by physical examination and EMG (electromyography). EMG measures the degree of compression and location of the nerve, and ensures accurate diagnosis. It is a review of electric currents and sometimes using needle electrodes. MR, Tomography, Biochemical tests also help diagnosis.
Treatment Of The Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Preventing excessive use at the beginning, avoiding the work that will cause an excessive load on the wrist.
- Pain relievers and anti-inflammatory drugs
- Wrist exercises
- Wrist splints, night splints
- Regional cortisone injections
- Physiotheraphy
- Surgical treatment
What Should We Do?
- When using a computer, rest your hands from time to time.
- Be careful in situations like some household chores which will cause difficulties to the wrist.
- Do not sleep on your wrist while sleeping at night.
- If you wake up with numbness in your hands, especially at night, if your sleep is split, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome begins.