What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a rather uncomplicated medical condition. People having this condition experience numbness, pain or tingling sensation in their hand and arm. This happens when a major nerve called median nerve in the hand is compressed.
What causes carpel tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel usually happens due to overuse of the hand using similar movements. For example, it is more common among musicians, carpenters etc. It is more common amongst women.
Symptoms / when to call your doctor
If you have mild pain or numbness which disappears within 2 weeks, you can ignore it. It is best to seek doctor’s advice if:
Pain/ numbness does not go away even after trying home remedies for 2 weeks
You are losing complete sensation in your fingers or your hand
You are unable to work with the affected hand
Why you should see a doctor?
You should seek immediate help if you feel you are losing sensation of your hand or fingers. Ignoring these symptoms might cause permanent damage to the median nerve after which, working with the hand will become extremely difficult.
How is it diagnosed?
Usually, a simple physical examination of your hands and comparing the strengths of both hands is enough to diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome.
To understand the problem further, the doctor might suggest imaging tests such as ultrasound, Xray or even MRI.
Dietary Restrictions
Regular diet can be resumed after surgery. However, it’s always better to:
Include high fibre foods
Drink plenty of fluids
Avoid alcoholic and caffeinated drinks
Treatment for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Carpal tunnel syndrome in early stages can be treated by simple remedies like taking more rest, applying ice compression.
Using a splint or taking anti-inflammatory medication also helps in relieving the symptoms.
However, if the symptoms are very severe, it is best to undergo a simple surgery.
Types of treatments
There are two types of surgeries which can help to relieve carpal tunnel syndrome. One of them is a minimally invasive procedure which is called endoscopic surgery and the other one is an open surgery.
Types of treatments:
| Specifics | Endoscopic Surgery | Open Surgery |
|---|---|---|
| Incision | Very small incision | 2-inch incision in wrist |
| Pain | Lesser | More |
| Recurrence | Possible | Possible |
| Dietary Restriction | No | No |
| Recovery Time | Faster | Slower than endoscopic surgery |
Endoscopic Surgery
In this procedure, an endoscope which is a thin tube with a camera is used to perform the surgery. The surgery is performed referring to the image which the camera shows on a screen.
Flow of the procedure:
Patient is given general anaesthesia or local anaesthesia for the procedure
A small incision is made to insert the endoscope
Observing the image on the screen from the camera, a ligament is cut to release pressure from the median nerve
The incision is stitched
Recovery Time and Dietary Advice:
Outpatient or overnight procedure with mild pain
Complete recovery can take a few weeks or even a few months
Risks involved in the treatment:
There are very less complications through this treatment. Some of the risks may be:
allergic or adverse reaction to anaesthesia or other drugs
bleeding
nerve injury
injury to nearby blood vessels
infection
Open Surgery
This procedure involves opening up the wrist to expose the ligaments and median nerve. Due to the large incision, the healing time is longer.
Flow of the procedure:
Patient is given general anaesthesia for the procedure
A large 2-inch incision is made at the wrist
The ligament putting pressure on the median nerve is cut
The incision is stitched up and thick bandages are put on the wrist
Recovery Time and Dietary Advice:
The heavy bandage is typically removed after 1-2 weeks
It might take several months to completely recover from the surgery
Risks involved in the treatment:
The procedure involves a large incision. So, some of the risks of this surgery may be:
allergic or adverse reaction to anaesthesia or other drugs
bleeding
nerve injury
injury to nearby blood vessels
infection