Carpal tunnel syndrome can be a painful and debilitating ailment for those impacted. Fortunately, there are various available treatment options.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Defined
Also known as the carpal canal, the carpal tunnel is an extended space that connects hand and forearm. Adjacent to this passageway are nerves, bones and connective tissues correlating to the wrist.
Overuse or injury to the structures in this bodily region might precipitate a medical condition known as carpal tunnel syndrome. Specifically, the condition impacts the median nerve, which extends from the forearm to the hand’s palm.
When this nerve becomes pressed upon or damaged, a wide array of symptoms can occur such as tingling in the hand or fingers, burning sensations, pain, weakness. In severe instances or when left unchecked, the malady may cause profound weakness in the hand that might make simple tasks like lifting or grasping objects quite difficult.
Though anyone can develop the ailment, the affliction is most common in individuals stricken with diseases that can impact nerves like diabetes or worked in an industry where repeated and stressful usage of the hands in required.
Potential Treatment Options
Physicians will prescribe specific remedial protocols after assessing several factors including the patient’s age, the syndrome’s severity and any underlying medical condition that might be precipitating nerve damage. Fortunately, however, various treatment options exist.
In individuals with less severe manifestations, a physician might suggest therapeutic options.
Over-The-Counter Medications
Certain individuals find relief after using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
Wrist Splints
For some patients, placing their wrist inside a splint provides refuge from associated pain and discomfort. Splinting one’s wrist keeps the area immobile, which could prove beneficial during sleep or other occasions when symptoms tend to worsen.
Self-Care
For those with mild cases or short-lived manifestations, executing home-care measures like resting the impacted hand for various intervals or applying ice to painful areas
may yield fruitful results.
In patients with more severe occurrences, doctors might employ more aggressive forms of treatment.
Corticosteroid Injections
These substances might be indicated as a means of alleviating swelling and pain associated with nerve injury.
Physical Therapy
Some patients might require employing specific hand movements to retrain their hands to properly move or work around associated pain.
Surgery
In the most extreme cases, surgical intervention to alleviate pressure on impacted median nerves might be necessary.