Carpal tunnel syndrome is the result of increased pressure on the median nerve in your wrist. Swelling from pregnancy causes compression of this nerve. There is no room for the tissues in the wrist to expand because of a constrictive fibrous band and this is what keeps the pressure on the nerve causing the symptoms.
Pregnancy can often cause carpal tunnel syndrome to manifest itself for the first time or exacerbate the problem if it is already present. With the increasing number of individuals using computer keyboards, carpal tunnel syndrome is becoming much more common and in some circumstances can be incapacitating. The numbness and tingling can progress to the point of causing impaired function where you may feel clumsy and start dropping things.
The initial advice and treatment one is given with the first onset of symptoms is immobilization of the hand/wrist using a splint. Steroids or surgery (to release the constrictive band) are also used though rarely necessary.
As with almost any medical condition there can be more than one cause for a particular problem. It is imperative that anyone who has symptoms consistent with carpal tunnel be fully evaluated by their health care provider to make sure the symptoms are not an indication of any other neurologic problems.
As noted,splinting/immobilization is by far the best first step and as simple an approach as it may appear to be it is extremely effective in most cases. Splints are specifically made for carpal tunnel syndrome and if not carried by your provider in the office, you can be referred to a medical supply company once you have been evaluated.
Douglas Penta MD
http://healthcenterforwomen.com/
since getting my laptop at Christmas, I think I am developing this!
ReplyDeleteI had this while pregnant and found the splint to be more annoying than the tingling, so I just muddled through. I wished, however, that I had mentioned it when the delivery nurse asked if I had any complications with pregnancy. Her trying to put an IV into my wrist hurt FAR worse than labor (and they moved it to my hand as a consequence.) It was only after the initial agony of the attempted IV that it occured to me that the carpal tunnel I had suffered with throughout the pregnancy was to blame.
ReplyDeleteCarpal Tunnel Syndrome is a painful condition that is characterized by symptoms such as pain, swelling, numbness, tingling, paresthesia (pins and needles) and loss of strength and coordination in the thumb, index, middle and sometimes one-half of the ring finger. Not all of the symptoms or fingers have to be affected simultaneously as symptoms often vary and may move around. (Symptoms present in the ring and little finger are not carpal tunnel syndrome and instead are related to ulnar nerve entrapment in disorders like Guyon's Syndrome and Cubital Tunnel Syndrome.) Carpal Tunnel release in Thailand
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