What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

The carpal tunnel is a narrow canal in the wrist area through which tendons and the median nerve (median nerve) pass. The median nerve is responsible for the sensitivity and mobility of the hand or fingers. Various factors can narrow the carpal tunnel and thus irritate the median nerve.

This is expressed by the following:

Symptoms:

• Numbness and tingling in the hand or fingers
  (often associated with a specific wrist position, e.g. on the phone, holding the steering wheel, etc.)
• Decreased sense of touch, objects fall out of hand
• Weakness when grasping, pain in affected fingers
• discomfort
• In the beginning, the symptoms often appear at night (sleeping hand), in an advanced stage there are sometimes permanent signs of paralysis during the day

Diagnosis:

• Functional and pain tests
• Measurement of nerve conduction velocity
• nerve ultrasound treatment

Therapy:

• Immobilization of the hand by wearing a splint at night
• cortisone injections
• Operation: During the operation, a ligament is severed, which runs across the tunnel. The nerve is exposed. Depending on the intensity of the original symptoms, these recede over the course of a few weeks to months.

Danger! The complaints should be clarified as early as possible, since in an advanced stage there can be permanent nerve damage and muscle breakdown in the thumb area!