What is Carpal Tunnel and who gets it?Â
- One of the most common hand conditions.Â
- Pressure on something called ‘median nerve’ that goes through the wrist.Â
- The nerve goes through a narrow ‘tunnel’ (carpal tunnel) in the wrist, and when it gets compressed, you can develop symptoms.Â
- 1-5% of the population get it at some point. Twice as common in women as men.Â
- Most often seen in those between 30 and 60 years of age.Â
- Increased risk with pregnancy, diabetes, wrist injury, obesity, and repetitive wrist activities such as manual labour and sport.Â
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How do you recognise it?Â
- People often start to notice it at night: wake up with a tingly or numb hand and have to shake the hand out. Especially prominent in the thumb, and index, and middle fingers.Â
- Sometimes described as electric shock, sometimes holding the steering wheel of car, holding a newspaper.Â
- May be described as pain, and people often get discomfort up the forearm.Â
- Can cause hand weakness and cause people to drop things.Â
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How do you diagnose it?Â
- Your doctor will take careful history.Â
- Examine the wristÂ
- Order a nerve conduction study which shows if the nerve is being compressed.Â
- Sometimes an Xray or blood tests are ordered to check for any underlying condition like diabetes. Â
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What do you do about?Â
- It depends on the severity.Â
- Often it involves avoiding activities that make it worse, resting the hand if repetitive movements make it worse.Â
- Using a wrist splint to keep wrist straight – especially at night to alleviate symptoms.Â
- If it’s severe and ongoing, then refer to the orthopaedic surgeon, who do a simple operation to relieve the pressure on the nerve.Â
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