Norma Pasekoff Weinberg - Natural & Herbal Remedies for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Excerpted from Natural Hand Care,
by Norma Pasekoff Weinberg

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Weinberg, Norma Pasekoff.

Natural & herbal remedies for carpal tunnel syndrome / Norma Pasekoff Weinberg

p. cm. (A Storey country wisdom bulletin; A-245)

ISBN 1-58017-304-7 (pbk : alk. paper)

1. Carpal tunnel syndromeAlternative treatment. I. Title: Natural and herbal remedies for carpal tunnel syndrome. II. Title. III. Series.

RC422.C26 W45 2000

616.87dc21

00-037549

Carpal tunnel syndrome is an injury commonly associated with repetitive motion. If you spend long hours at your computer terminal, bicycle for long periods of time, are a musician or a factory worker with a high-force, highly repetitious task, or face any other type of repetitive hand-wrist movement or jarring, you may be susceptible to this ailment. The injury usually begins with numbness and tingling or burning in the fingers. It can progress to pain and decreased strength and coordination of the hands and a limited range of motion in the forearm and upper arm. Most cases of carpal tunnel syndrome will resolve on their own or can be treated with natural remedies. In severe cases, however, carpal tunnel syndrome can be crippling, causing muscle atrophy in the thumb and permanent loss of sensation in the fingers. In such cases, surgery is usually recommended.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by undue pressure on the median nerve, which runs through the tunnel formed by the carpal bones in the wrist and brings sensation to and assists in the movement of the fingers. High-force repetitive motion, its most well-known cause, can create irritation and inflammation in the carpal tunnel, thus squeezing the median nerve. Bone dislocations or fractures, inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, the fluid retention common to pregnancy, and even hormonal changes caused by menopause can also cause symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Herbs Will Work, but Use Common Sense

When accompanied by a healthy resting period, a conscious effort to relax your grip, and gentle stretching exercises, herbal remedies can be effective treatments for most cases of carpal tunnel syndrome. However, herbs are never a cure-all, and in more serious cases medical attention from a qualified practitioner may be necessary.

If youre experiencing symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, be sure to consult with your primary healthcare provider to ensure that carpal tunnel is the proper diagnosis tendonitis, for example, can exhibit symptoms similar to those of carpal tunnel syndrome. If you have carpal tunnel syndrome and your symptoms seem to worsen, or if after resting your wrist and trying these natural-care suggestions the symptoms dont improve, ask your primary-care physician for further assistance and recommendations.

Consult a physician for a diagnosis if you experience:

Recurrent numbness, pain, or a tingling sensation in your fingers, wrist, or hand, especially if it persists at night and if it can be shaken out

A sense of weakness and tendency to drop things

Loss of feeling of heat or cold

Persistent feeling of swelling in the hands although no inflammation is visible

The carpal tunnel is created by the bones of the wrist, which are laid out in a contour that resembles a shallow basin. There is a narrow opening in the palm side of the wrist made up of eight wrist, or carpal, bones. Three walls of the tunnel consist of these carpal bones, while the fourth wall is formed by the transverse carpal ligament, a strap of tough ligament.

The carpal tunnel is a very crowded section. The median nerve, which provides feeling for the fingers (except the little finger) and assists in hand and finger movement, and nine tendons that flex the fingers pass through the carpal ligament. As the fingers move and repeat a movement again and again, the area inside the ligament can become irritated, causing the tendons to swell and to squeeze the median nerve. Pressure on the median nerve can cause symptoms of discomfort in the fingers, hand, and elbow. These symptoms may include the sensation of numbness (often most noticeable at night), tingling, burning, cold, pain, and stiffness, or physical problems with grip strength and thumb weakness, dependtense the pressure on the nerve is.

The median nerve runs
through the tight space
beneath the transverse
carpal ligament.

If you are concerned that you might have carpal tunnel syndrome, there are a couple of simple tests you can perform at home. However, it is important to get an appropriate diagnosis before treating carpal tunnel syndrome, so be sure to see a knowledgeable healthcare professional. More extensive tests include the phenar muscle test, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computerized tomography (CT) scans, electromyography (EMG), and nerve conduction studies (NTS).

Tinels test: This is also known as the median nerve percussion test. Place your hand palm-side up on a table. Tap the area over the median nerve with the index finger of the opposite hand. If you feel tingling or numbness, the test is positive. (Tinels test is correct in diagnosing carpal tunnel syndrome about 65 percent of the time.)

Phalens test: Place your elbows on a surface and allow your hands to relax to a 90-degree angle at the wrists. Or gently place the backs of the hands together with no force, and hold this position for 1 minute. If you feel any numbness, tingling, or pain in your thumb, index finger, or ring finger, the test is positive. (Phalens test is correct in diagnosing carpal tunnel syndrome 75 to 80 percent of the time.)