Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: 4 to 10 million Americans

Patient Education - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: "CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME is affecting 4 to 10 million Americans.

• Mediracer or ENMG can be used for diagnosis.

CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME

Carpal tunnel - a syndrome name so well known that nearly everyone has heard of it. Unfortunately, given this widespread familiarity, people often attribute any discomfort or pain in the hand or wrist to carpal tunnel syndrome. Carpal tunnel syndrome is quite common, affecting 4 to 10 million Americans, and usually very treatable. However, there are many other conditions which can cause similar complaints. It is important to know the difference.

+ What it is	+ How it's treated
+ What causes it	+ Points to remember
+ Who gets it	+ To find a rheumatologist
+ How it's diagnosed	+ For more information

Fast Facts

• The main symptom of carpal tunnel syndrome is numbness of the fingers.
  
  
• Carpal tunnel syndrome may interfere with hand strength and sensation, and cause a decrease in hand function.
  
  
• Carpal tunnel syndrome can be effectively treated with medications, splinting, steroid injections in the wrist and/or hand surgery.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment: I came across"Non Surgical Treatments for Carpal Tunnel" and would like to ask Veijo Lesonen about alternative treatment and therapy methods.

"Muscular Skeletal Physiologists and Clinicians have been using massage therapy and specialty elastic tapping for decades to enhance the body’s natural healing process, relieve pain, swelling, inflammation and numbness caused by soft tissue injuries such as CTS to successfully avoid invasive surgical procedures."

There is a lot of information about alternative methods on the internet. At what stage of the CTS illness is massage therapy effective?

"People often ask, 'Why should I have surgery to solve a problem with inflammation in my joint?' This is a good question. There are so many well developed and effective alternative therapies that can solve the problem of inflammation without resorting to, for instance, Carpal Tunnel Surgery. These techniques improve blood circulation and lymphatic fluid exchange which results in more rapid regeneration of damaged tissue at the cellular level and dispersion of fluids contributing to swollen fascia tissue. These Carpal Tunnel Treatments have been proven to relieve pressure on the Median Nerve and eliminate the pain and symptoms of CTS."

1. Is surgery the only alternative?
2. What are the best alternative therapies?
3. How should inflammation then be treated?
4. What changes should be made to working conditions?
5. Rapid regeneration of damaged tissue at the cellular level?

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Massage Magazine

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Massage Magazine: "

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most frequently studied upper-extremity nerve-entrapment condition. As a result, a comprehensive understanding and definition of this problem has developed.

Unfortunately, because CTS is well known, it has become a very popular diagnosis. There is a tendency to immediately conclude the presence of CTS when someone complains of pain or paresthesia in the hand or forearm region.

CTS is common as a work-related, repetitive-motion injury. It occurs more often in women than in men, though there is no evidence that it is gender-specific.

Rather, the incidence of the condition correlates to certain occupations. People who work on factory assembly lines, with computers, or in other jobs that require repetitive motion are more prone to CTS. Women are more highly represented in these types of positions than are men, which may be why CTS is more common among women.

Effective solutions to treatment and prevention of CTS are sorely needed. Accurate diagnosis of the condition is critical, as other nerve entrapment syndromes are also able to produce some of the symptoms noted in CTS.

For example, thoracic outlet syndrome may create paresthesia in the hand similar to CTS. Massage performed by a knowledgeable and skilled massage therapist may be an affordable and effective alternative to traditional approaches that have proven unsuccessful. At the least, most CTS cases will benefit greatly from treatment strategies that incorporate soft-tissue therapy."

Helge: Mediracer is a tool for Accurate Diagnosis!