Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS), also called median neuropathy of the wrist, is a painful condition resulting in numbness in the palmar side of the thumb, index, middle, and half of the ring finger. This is an important distinction as many patients will report that they have carpal tunnel syndrome but then describe their pain as numbness in their last two fingers or the base of their thumb. Any area other than the index middle and part of the ring finger is not true CTS and is most likely an entrapment of the radial or ulnar nerve.

 

Causes of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

 

The majority of CTS is idiopathic (no known cause). We believe that the reason there is no known cause is that the whole body is not fully examined. It is our experience that trigger points in muscles of the shoulder can refer directly into the wrist and hand and mimic the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome to such an extent that even medical doctors can be fooled. There are places in the neck, elbow, and forearm that also have the ability to entrap the median nerve.

 

Traditional Carpal Tunnel Treatment

 

Traditionally carpal tunnel syndrome is treated one of two ways. Either a brace is worn, possibly only at night but in some cases all day, or carpal tunnel release surgery is performed. There are two types of carpal tunnel release surgery, open carpal tunnel release and endoscopic carpal tunnel release. The technique is slightly different but the goal of each surgery is to get the pressure off of the median nerve by cutting the transverse carpal ligament. The short term success of these surgeries is around 90%, however when the long term efficacy of the procedure was studied 57% of the patients reported a return of their preoperative symptoms on average 2 years after the operation.

 

Highly-Effective, Non-Surgical Carpal Tunnel Treatment

 

By treating carpal tunnel syndrome as more than strictly a wrist problem, we at the St. John - Clark Pain Treatment Center have achieved long lasting relief from these symptoms without the pain and inherent risks related to surgery. A thorough examination of the body as a whole has shown problems as far away as the hips leading to shoulder imbalances which then lead to wrist pain. We believe that this is the reason why most CTS surgeries are not successful long term. We see that the wrist pain can simply be a symptom of a larger problem and the only way to achieve long term success with carpal tunnel syndrome is to understand and properly treat the source of the problem.

 

Call today to let one of our expert therapists answer any questions you may have regarding Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (727) 347-HEAL (4325) or email us at info@stjohnclarkptc.com.