Do you work in a job that requires you to do the same hand movements day after day? Do you often experience pain or tingling sensations in your hands or wrists? You may be experiencing symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. This condition inflicts over eight million people a year, and there are a variety of treatment options. Here are some facts to help you become more familiar with it.

Identifying Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

The median nerve runs down your arm and passes through a narrow space in your wrist into your hand. If this space is too tight, the nerve gets squeezed, causing pain, weakness and numbness in the wrist and hand. As the condition worsens, people may be woken up at night from the discomfort, have difficulty performing their jobs, and may become dependent on pain medication to manage their daily activities.

Treatment Options

There are two options for treatment, non-surgical and surgical. A doctor may recommend wearing a wrist brace, anti-inflammatory medications, or steroid medications in minor cases. Additional options include adjusting how you perform daily activities, heat treatments and physical therapy.

If these options don’t improve your condition, microsurgery Houston is a final option. This outpatient procedure involves cutting the ligament in your wrist to make more room for the nerve. The surgery does require a few weeks of limited movement for adequate recovery, but it allows for a long-term impact on decreasing pain.

Preventing Further Problems

Carpal tunnel syndrome can be prevented if you adjust your daily activities. If your job requires repetitive movements, make it a point to change up the way to do your job, so it isn’t always the same movement. Do some stretching exercises before work and take breaks from the repetitive activity as often as possible.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a widespread ailment, but prevention and treatment mean that it won’t interfere with your daily life long term.