What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and how does it originate?

Answer 1

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a medical condition in which the median nerve is compressed at the wrist causing symptoms like tingling, numbness, night time wakening, pain, coldness, and sometimes weakness in parts of the hand. CTS is much more common in women than it is in men, and has a peak incidence around age 50 (though it can occur in any adult). It likely is present to some extent in up to 10% of the adult population. I would agree with the above post. "How it originates" is a hotly debated subject among legal and medical experts. A Study by Harvard and others have now shown that computer useage is not really a cause of the majority, if any, carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) cases.Certainly repetitive use can aggravate some CTS cases...but does it or did it ACTUALLY CAUSE CTS is another issue.

There are many causes or risk factors for getting CTS other than repetitive use such as; obesity,Diabetes,pregnancy,hypothyroidism,Arthritis etc...really anything that can cause swelling and inflammation in the carpal tunnel canal,and therefore exerting pressure over a prolonged time on the median nerve,can cause carpal tunnel symptoms.

Carpal tunnel is the space between the wrist bones and the ligaments of the wrist through which the median nerve passes. Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) develops when the median nerve becomes compressed. The symptoms include: pins and needles or tingling of the first three fingers pain or numbness usually worse at night weakness of the handThere are many risk factors that may contribute to a person getting CTS, such as diabetes, repetitive work and pregnancy just to name a few. Most cases should be treated with conservative measures first such as a day wrist support, wrist ice wraps, pain relieving gels and night splints. If symptoms still persist you should see a healthcare professional for further treatment options such as surgery. The carpal tunnel is the anatomical name of the part of your wrist where the carpal tunnel syndrome can occur. It is a tunnel formed by wrist bones on 3 sides and a thick band on the top. Then median nerve and the tendons go through this hour glass shaped area or tunnel. If the median nerve gets inflammed or compressed for long periods of time it can cause carpal tunnel syndrome Carpal tunnel syndrome is happens as the result of compression of the median nerve at the wrist. This may bring about numbness, tingling, weakness, or muscle damage in the hands and fingers. The median nervecontrols the thumb side of the palm, and to the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and the thumb side of the ring finger. It alsocontrols movement and sensation to part of the hand. The area where this nerve runs into the hand is called the carpal tunnel. This passageway rigid, and therefore any swelling in this area can put pressure on the nerve. This may also be called entrapment of the nerve.

Answer2: In addition to the above, my orthopedist and neurologist said that carpal tunnel begins in the neck and not in the wrist or hand. I saw an article online that indicates this as well. It says the following: "Medical experts at Advanced Health and Physical Medicine in Greenville, NC have seen numerous patients who were experiencing carpal tunnel symptoms that originate on a different level. The trajectory of the median nerve starts in the spinal nerve roots that exit the neck vertebrae and travel towards the hand in the vicinity of spinal and neck muscles and through the elbows Any obstruction or misalignment at this level can also cause carpal tunnel symptoms."