Do-it-yourself cures for what ails you

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

The bane of office workers, restaurant servers, carpenters, and journalists, carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful reminder of how much many of us depend on our hands to earn a living. At first, symptoms include numbness, tingling, loss of strength or flexibility, and pain. Yet carpal tunnel can progress over time, with a very small percentage of patients developing permanent injury. That's why it's best to address symptoms head-on.

The good news is that most people with carpal tunnel syndrome recover completely and avoid injuring themselves again by changing the way they work. What's more, those with carpal tunnel can make other changes that ease the pain.

Carpal tunnel syndrome isn't something that happens overnight. It's a cumulative trauma disorder that develops over time when your hands and wrists perform repetitive movements.

Think of New York City's Holland Tunnel. Imagine what a pain it is to try to get through it during rush hour as multiple lanes of traffic fight to squeeze into two-lane tubes. Your wrist, known as the carpal tunnel, is a lot like the tunnel under the Hudson River during rush hour. When you use your hand in repeated motions—like writing, typing, or hammering—the tendons, which run like lanes through your wrist, swell and compress the median nerve that runs to your hand.

Women are twice as likely as men to experience carpal tunnel syndrome. Symptoms normally affect one hand but can be present in both. Sometimes the affected hand will feel numb or tingle, or feel like it's 'fallen asleep.'

When the feeling comes, it's time to look for relief. Here's how.

When to Call a Doctor


Wrist and hand pain is not always the result of carpal tunnel syndrome and could actually be the sign of a more serious illness, cautions physical therapist Susan Isernhagen. "If you get a crackly or crunchy feeling in your wrist when you exercise it, that's not a sign of carpal tunnel syndrome," she says. "It may be a symptom of osteoarthritis." Ask your doctor to check it out.

Wrist and hand pain is not always the result of carpal tunnel syndrome and could actually be the sign of a more serious illness, cautions physical therapist Susan Isernhagen. "If you get a crackly or crunchy feeling in your wrist when you exercise it, that's not a sign of carpal tunnel syndrome," she says. "It may be a symptom of osteoarthritis." Ask your doctor to check it out.

Panel of Advisors


Stephen Cash, M.D., is an orthopedic surgeon specializing in hand surgery. He practices in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. Colin Hall, M.D., is a professor of neurology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine. Susan Isernhagen is a physical therapist and COO of DSI Work Solutions in Duluth, Minnesota. She acts as a consultant to industries to help reduce work injuries and rehabilitate injured workers.

Stephen Cash, M.D., is an orthopedic surgeon specializing in hand surgery. He practices in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.

Colin Hall, M.D., is a professor of neurology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine.

Susan Isernhagen is a physical therapist and COO of DSI Work Solutions in Duluth, Minnesota. She acts as a consultant to industries to help reduce work injuries and rehabilitate injured workers.

Remedies


Twist your wrist in circles	"When the tingling begins, it's time to do some hand exercises," says physical therapist Susan Isernhagen. One of these is a simple circle exercise that rotates the wrist.
Raise your hands above your head	Get those hands off the keyboard and up into the air. "Raise your arm above your head and rotate your arm while rotating your wrist at the same time," says Isernhagen.	1 2 3 4 5
Rest your hands and rotate your head	Take a break from what you're doing. "Rest your hands on a desk or a table and then rotate your head for about 2 minutes.
Get into an exercise routine	It's important to exercise and relax all the muscles that are giving you problems every day, even when you're not in pain, Isernhagen says.
Reach for the aspirin	"To reduce pain and inflammation, take a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medication like aspirin or ibuprofen," says orthopedic surgeon Stephen Cash, M.D. Don't take acetaminophen, though.	1 2 3 4 5
Put the pain on ice	"Cold packs will work to bring the swelling down," Isernhagen says. Don't wrap your wrist in a heating pad. That just increases the swelling.	1 2 3 4 5
Lift your hand above shoulder-height	"Avoid having your hand lower than your shoulder when you take a break from work," says Isernhagen. "Sit with your elbows supported on your desk or propped on the arms of your chair.	1 2 3 4 5
Squeeze away pain	"Squeezing motions of the fingers will help relieve the tingling feeling," Isernhagen says. Press your fingers into your palm, then stretch them way back and hold. Repeat.
Don't drop your arms at night	Keep your arms close to your body and your wrists straight while sleeping.	1 2 3 4 5
Slip on a splint for relief	To relieve symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, use a wrist splint to keep your wrist straight. "The splints help take pressure off the nerve," says Dr. Cash.	1 2 3 4 5
Don't wrap your wrist tightly	You don't want to completely tie up traffic in your wrist. Don't wrap your wrist with an elastic bandage, because you could wrap it too tight and cut off the circulation, says Isernhagen.	1 2 3 4 5
Use the right grip	If you have to carry anything with a handle, be sure the grip fits your hand. If the grip is too small, build it up with tape or rubberized tubing.
Make your shoulder do the work	"Don't concentrate pressure at the base of the wrist when using hand tools. Use your elbow and shoulder as much as possible," recommends Isernhagen.