Top Stories Colorado Springs

Posts Tagged ‘physical therapy’

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a disorder that can be worse on some days than others. At the height of your injury, inflammation and swelling can cause pain or numbness in your hands, wrist or fingers, the pain associated with carpal tunnel can be slight or unbearable. When symptoms first start, they may be a simple as a slight tingling sensation but as it progresses, the pain can radiate from your wrist all the way up your arm. This can lead to lost time at work and problems doing everyday tasks, not to mention sleep. When carpal tunnel syndrome begins to affect your job or daily life it is time to seek medical attention. However, symptoms may be slight at first they can rapidly progress to major issues.

Different doctors may prescribe different treatment options for carpal tunnel syndrome. These can range from anti-inflammatory drugs to exercise, stretching, injections, wrist braces or in extreme situations surgery. Wrist braces can be used during the day to support your hand and wrist during work, or only in the evening to support healing. You will need to get treatment for carpal tunnel as soon as you notice symptoms instead of waiting until you are in severe pain or your activities are difficult.

Like any other type of medical problem carpal tunnel syndrome needs to be taken care of when it first begins so that the syndrome does not become a disabling issue or something that can only be cured through surgery.

The median nerve is surrounded by these flexors and can be put under pressure if the flexors are inflamed due to repetitive movements daily. Pressure can give you the tingling or numbing sensation that you feel after using your hands or wrists continuously. People who work in industries such as tailoring, machinery, construction or even musicians or other such similar daily work activities may find themselves prone to this unfortunate condition. Using regular stretching and exercise techniques can help keep you from experiencing carpal tunnel even if you haven’t been prone to any symptoms as of yet.

Wrist braces and stretching exercises can help alleviate any painful symptoms of carpal tunnel and keep you from experiencing any further problems. Many people who begin to experience problems associated with carpal tunnel begin to wear a wrist brace during the night to avoid overextension of the wrist while sleeping and to stabilize the muscles during rest. Using hot or cold compresses or anti-inflammatory medication can help with any inflammation that you may be experiencing during this time of treatment.

If you are, experiencing inflammation or swelling the use of hot and cold packs with anti-inflammatory drugs can be very helpful. If or when your symptoms become more severe you can use a wrist brace during the day or while you are working to prevent the condition from worsening. Carpal tunnel will not heal on its own in fact left untreated the disorder will progressively get worse.

Beginning treatment of CTS usually involves resting the affected hand and wrist for at least 2 weeks, avoiding activities that may worsen symptoms, and immobilizing the wrist to avoid further damage. Anti-infalamatory drugs (such as ibuprofin) or diuretics can also be used for this purpose. When the basic habits that caused the CTS in the first place have been reduced, simple carpal tunnel exercises can help keep the CTS from progressing.