Carpal tunnel syndrome can cause painful episodes of burning, tingling and numbness throughout your thumb and first two fingers. If you have carpal tunnel, there are several potentially effective ways to find relief.
Change Your Typing Position
If you frequently type, this can contribute to the development of carpal tunnel or aggravate existing problems. There are many keyboards available with a cushion that is used to give your wrists a place to rest. If you own a laptop, you may find that the part of the laptop where the trackpad is located is more comfortable for resting your wrists when you type.
Consider buying an external mouse and leave the trackpad area for resting your wrists, if resting your wrists on the trackpad area of your laptop provides more comfort and stability. The larger surface area for your wrists can minimize the need to bend your wrists as you type and help you keep your wrists in a neutral position while typing. Furthermore, using an external mouse is often easier on the wrists than the trackpad.
Use Splinting For Stability
Although many of the symptoms of carpal tunnel are felt in the fingers, the root of the problem is irritation and compression of the median nerve, as it passes through the wrist. Splinting is the most common method of keeping your wrists in a neutral position, but it can be difficult to find a splint that allows you enough flexibility to use your hands, while minimizing wrist movements.
Before buying a splint that is specifically made for your wrists, try wrapping an elastic bandage around your wrists. The elastic material will minimize over-tightening of the bandage, which can cause more discomfort if you have other problems, such as pain, inflammation or arthritis in your wrists. You can adjust the way you wrap the bandage to give you a combination of comfort, support and flexibility.
Incorporate Heat Therapy
Carpal tunnel is most commonly associated with overuse, but there are other conditions that can cause the condition. For example, if you have any type of arthritis that affects your wrists, you may eventually develop carpal tunnel. Inflammation and swelling from arthritis can irritate the median nerve, causing pain and numbness. Deformities or degeneration of the wrist joints due to arthritis can also cause pressure on nerves. If you find that heat therapy is effective for managing symptoms of arthritis in your wrists, consider using the same approach for minimizing carpal tunnel.
You can apply heat to your wrist by using a heating pad or a warm washcloth. Soak a washcloth in water and wring out the excess water, then place the wet washcloth in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. You want the wet washcloth to be warm enough to provide relief, without burning yourself. Some people find the moist heat is better at alleviating pain and inflammation than dry heat. Another option for heat therapy is using capsaicin patches or creams. They will stay warm longer, and can be used during activities.
Consider Medical Intervention
Milder cases of carpal tunnel can be effectively managed at home. However, you may find that at-home treatments are not helping. Steroid injections are usually the first type of medical treatment that your doctor will try to help alleviate your symptoms. Injections are helpful because they are administered directly into your wrist and usually reduce pain and inflammation within a few days. There are limits to how many steroid injections you can have, because they can cause bone deterioration.
If you need injections more often than allowed, you may want to consider surgical approaches to prevent median nerve entrapment. The surgery only requires a small incision to cut the ligament that is creating pressure on your median nerve. Once the area has healed, there will be more space for the median nerve, which reduces the likelihood that surrounding structures will entrap the nerve or create pressure.
Mild cases of carpal tunnel syndrome are usually manageable by avoiding repetitive motions of your hands and wrist, and keeping your wrists in a neutral position. If carpal tunnel is increasingly painful and at-home care is no longer effective, there are medical interventions that can reduce pain and numbness, without major surgery.
