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Carpal Tunnel
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The carpal tunnel is the canal in the wrist bounded osteofibrous materail through which the flexor tendons and the median nerve pass. It is band of ligaments and small bones in your wrist. The flexor is a muscle that brings two bones closer together allowing flexing of the part or a decreased angle of the joint. |
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The median nerve is a combined motor and sensory nerve having itorigin in the brachial plexis.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a condition caused by repetitive motion, often of the arm and wrist, and it typically effects people that operate computers, cash registers, musical instruments, etc.
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Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the median nerve, which runs from the forearm into the hand, becomes pressed or squeezed at the wrist. The median nerve controls sensations to the palm side of the thumb and fingers (although not the little finger), as well as impulses to some small muscles in the hand that allow the fingers and thumb to move. The carpal tunnel - a narrow, rigid passageway of ligament and bones at the base of the hand houses the median nerve and tendons.
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Sometimes, thickening from irritated tendons or other swelling narrows the tunnel and causes the median nerve to be compressed. The result may be pain, weakness, or numbness in the hand and wrist, radiating up the arm. Although painful sensations may indicate other conditions, carpal tunnel syndrome is the most common and widely known of the entrapment neuropathies in which the body's peripheral nerves are compressed or traumatized. | |
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Symptoms usually start gradually, with frequent burning, tingling, or itching numbness in the palm of the hand and the fingers, especially the thumb and the index and middle fingers. Some carpal tunnel sufferers say their fingers feel useless and swollen, even though little or no swelling is apparent. The symptoms often first appear in one or both hands during the night, since many people sleep with flexed wrists.
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A person with carpal tunnel syndrome may wake up feeling the need to "shake out" the hand or wrist. As symptoms worsen, people might feel tingling during the day. Decreased grip strength may make it difficult to form a fist, grasp small objects, or perform other manual tasks. In chronic and/or untreated cases, the muscles at the base of the thumb may waste away. Some people are unable to tell between hot and cold by touch. | |
Other contributing factors include trauma or injury to the wrist that cause swelling, such as sprain or fracture; overactivity of the pituitary gland; hypothyroidism; rheumatoid arthritis; mechanical problems in the wrist joint; work stress; repeated use of vibrating hand tools; fluid retention during pregnancy or menopause; or the development of a cyst or tumor in the canal.
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Chiropractic treatment, which directly releases pressure on the nerves, is highly beneficial to carpal tunnel syndrome patients.
After a thorough examination, your chiropractic doctor will perform specific adjustments where needed, to help normalize structure and reduce nerve irritation. When given time, conservative, chiropractic care has produced excellent results with carpal tunnel problems, without drugs or surgery. |
Who is at risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome?
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| Women are three times more likely than men to develop carpal tunnel syndrome, perhaps because the carpal tunnel itself may be smaller in women than in men. The dominant hand is usually affected first and produces the most severe pain. Persons with diabetes or other metabolic disorders that directly affect the body's nerves and make them more susceptible to compression are also at high risk. Carpal tunnel syndrome usually occurs only in adults.
The risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome is not confined to people in a single industry or job, but is especially common in those performing assembly line work - manufacturing, sewing, finishing, cleaning, and meat, poultry, or fish packing. |
Can chiropractic repair bone spurs?
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| Bone spurs and other arthritic changes to joints in the feet, hands or spine is the body’s response to long-standing malfunction. Restoring proper joint function is thought to slow or stop this degenerative process. |
How can carpal tunnel syndrome be prevented?
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| At the workplace, workers can do on-the-job conditioning, perform stretching exercises, take frequent rest breaks, wear splints to keep wrists straight, and use correct posture and wrist position. Wearing fingerless gloves can help keep hands warm and flexible. Workstations, tools and tool handles, and tasks can be redesigned to enable the worker's wrist to maintain a natural position during work. |
Is it ok to wear a wrist brace?
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| A brace is often prescribed to help protect the wrist and reduce mobility. While it may alleviate certain symptoms, it virtually ignores the malfunctioning joints causing the problem. The chiropractic approach is to help restore proper motion to affected joints and strengthen supporting muscles and soft tissues. While this may require some type of ongoing supportive care, many patients are able to resume their activities without bracing. |
I do a lot of computer typing. What can I do to relax?
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The most important element of both prevention and recovery is to reduce tension in the muscles and tendons. This requires learning how to relax.
If you're under a load of stress, this is doubly important. Tune out the world and breath deep and regular.
Relaxing should become a guiding principle in your work: every three minutes take a three second break.
Pay attention to your posture:
- Let your shoulders relax
- Let your elbows swing free
- Keep your wrists straight
- Pull your chin in to look down - don't flop your head forward
- Keep the hollow in the base of your spine
- Try leaning back in the chair
- Don't slouch or slump forward
- Alter your posture from time to time
- Every 20 minutes, get up and bend your spine backward
Keyboard drawers, wrist supports, and keyboard replacements:
For some people, wrist supports seem to work wonders. If you drop your arms at your side and then lift your hands up at the elbow, you want your keyboard under your hands when your elbows are at about 90 degrees. Of course, you want to avoid pronation, wrist extension, and ulnar deviation at all costs. Wrist pads may help at this.
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