Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Tobin Hanson said carpal tunnel syndrome is one of the most common reasons patients come to see him. “They say my fingers feel numb. A lot of times at night if I’m driving. People who type all day or work in construction doing repetitive activities and they say my hand goes numb what’s with this?”

Symptoms usually start gradually, but if left untreated you can lose grip strength and function. “A nerve in the hand gets compressed and if it gets compressed enough the blood supply to that nerve gets cut off, so people develop numbness and tingling in their hands,” said Dr. Hanson.

Patients often notice pain at night. Depending on the patient's condition, doctors typically start with non-surgical treatments. “As you can imagine if you’re typing at the office all day in a non-ergonomic position you’re sitting like this. When we sleep, we’re sitting like this and this. That is not ideal. We start with splinting at night to keep the wrist straight. At the office depending on how bad symptoms are you can also do a cortisone shot,” said Dr. Hanson.

For more moderate to severe cases, a quick out-patient surgery can help provide relief. “You can make a small incision from about here to here, and then you essentially put a sunroof on the carpal tunnel. It’s shaped like an oval and where my fingers are on top is where we would release it,” said Dr. Hanson.

That takes the pressure off the nerve and restores function. Recovery takes about 4-6 weeks. Speak with your doctor if you’re experiencing numbness or tingling in your hands.


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