Other Name(s)
Median mononeuropathy at the wrist

What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome is the pinching of the median nerve at the wrist, causing hand discomfort.

Areas of Body Directly Affected:
Hand

Symptoms:
Numbness, tingling, pain and weakness in the thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers. The symptoms may wake you from sleep or may worsen when you do forceful or repetitive work with your hands, like driving, gardening, cleaning, or using a computer.

Treatment:
It is important to treat carpal tunnel syndrome early, because if treated correctly it can be more readily reversed. If treatment is delayed, the condition is likely to worsen and surgery may be necessary. Non-surgical treatment is usually the first choice, and may include modifying the way you use your hands while working, wrist splints properly worn at night (not while doing daily tasks) and loose (so blood flow is not restricted), and injecting the carpal tunnel with a steroid medication. The surgical treatment for people with carpal tunnel syndrome should be considered when symptoms have failed to respond to the treatments above or if CTS is at a late stage (symptoms never go away).

Modifying Computer Work
Change to a split keyboard, reduce pinch force on the mouse, eliminate the drag maneuver on the mouse, change pointing device (try a trackball or touch pad).

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