Early Warning Signs of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Your hands are used for almost every task, typing on a computer, cooking dinner, playing an instrument, and more all require the use of your hands. This means that when a medical condition affects your hand or wrists, your world is turned upside down. Suddenly, mundane tasks become exercises in pain tolerance, if not downright impossible to complete. One of the most prevalent conditions of the hand and wrist in the modern world is carpal tunnel syndrome. In fact, the National Library of Medicine reports that 50 per 1,000 individuals suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome. Recognizing the early warning signs of this condition can make recovery much easier. 

What Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? 

First, let’s explain exactly what carpal tunnel syndrome is. Carpal tunnel syndrome is a medical condition that causes numbness, tingling, and weakness in your hand and arm. This makes it extremely difficult to perform everyday activities that require the use of your hands. Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by  the main median nerve being squeezed as it passes through a narrow space in your wrist. This can happen due to an injury such as a broken wrist, or from repetitive use like typing at a computer. 

Tingling or “Pins and Needles” 

Pins and needles are one of the core symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Pins and needles refers to a sharp, prickly tingling feeling. This can be very distracting and extremely uncomfortable. The pins and needles can be felt anywhere in the hand but are most prevalent in the thumb, index, middle, and half of the ring finger. The pinky finger is usually not affected. While pins and needles may not seem like a terrible symptom, if it is experienced day after day, it can become unbearable. If you are experiencing recurring pins and needles in your hands, it is time to consult a medical professional. 

Numbness in the Fingers 

Similar to pins and needles, but slightly different, is numbness in the fingers. This is a loss of sensation in the fingers. Just like with the pins and needles, the numbness particularly hits the thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers. This symptom can often be recognized by exaggerated shaking of the hands as the individual suffering from carpal tunnel attempts to bring feeling back to their fingers. 

Nighttime Symptoms

A sign that carpal tunnel syndrome is responsible for any symptoms you’re experiencing is if the symptoms worsen at night. This is because most people bend their wrist while sleeping, which increases the amount of pressure on the median nerve. Additionally, lying flat causes fluid to pool in your upper body, adding swelling around the wrist. Furthermore, remaining still for hours while sleeping ensures that the pressure on the median nerve is constant, causing symptoms to be worse than during the day when you are moving your arms and hands around consistently. 

Hand Weakness

One of the most frustrating symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome is hand weakness. You will notice that your hands do not feel as strong, causing:

• Dropping Items:Trouble holding objects like cups, phones, or tools securely.
• Weak grip:Difficulty opening jars, turning doorknobs, shaking hands, or any other task that requires a strong grip.
• Pinching loss:Trouble using the thumb and index finger to pick up small objects.
• Clumsiness:Struggling with tasks that require hand dexterity, such as buttoning a shirt or tying shoes.

Hand weakness is often one of the most obvious warning signs of carpal tunnel.   

Increased Symptoms During Certain Activities

Certain activities will cause carpal tunnel symptoms to worsen considerably. Such activities include:

• Typing on a keyboard.
• Using a computer mouse.
• Driving.
• Holding a phone.
• Reading a book.
• Using hand tools.

Pretty much any activity that requires hand stability or dexterous finger movements will exacerbate carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms. 

Treatment Options

 Treatment for carpal tunnel almost always begins with conservative options. This includes splints, activity modification, ergonomic improvements, and anti-inflammatory medications. This is often all that will be needed if early warning signs were noticed and acted upon. More severe cases may require surgery. The only way to know for sure is to consult a hand specialist. They will be able to diagnose you and put together a treatment plan.