Carpal tunnel help ?

I’ve recently injured my elbow & wrist and developed really bad pins and needles in my thumb and fingers , seen doctors etc and got diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome ,trapped median nerve, I’m wearing a wrist brace to help keeping it straight etc, but while I’ve still got tingling in my thumb and 2 fingers I’m concerned as I cant bend my thumb at all at the knuckle joint ? .. I can move my thumb but not bend it , if that makes sense ?

anyone experience similar issues with carpal ? …. will it come back when the swelling has gone down ? .. any help would be appreciated

Didn’t have any issues with bending thumbs had it in both hands operated on my right but they wouldn’t operate on my left as it wasn’t bad enough so still suffering.
Just be aware it took about a year from first diagnosis to operation.

Suffering from that as a result of a job I used to do, loading large chunks of printed paper onto an industrial folding machine, sometimes for a couple of weeks at a time, and it came back to bite me a year ago last October – I suddenly had the pins and needles sensation from my fingertips to my armpit on my right arm.
I was prescribed Anatryptiline for a month, which worked, but then it came back, so I was advised to wear a wrist splint to bed, and take anti-inflammatory medication, which I do already, Naproxen for arthritis in my knee.
It’s been getting worse more recently, so a recent doctors appointment has recommended an X-Ray of both hands, and quite likely cortisone injections in both thumb joints.
Which can be quite painful once the initial anaesthetic wears off, or so I’m told by friends who’ve had it done… 😟
Long-term, I’ve got another doctors appointment tomorrow afternoon, to look into longer-term support by replacing the stretchy cloth and Velcro splints with 3D printed wrist brace/splints – the Velcro loses its effectiveness after a while, plus using a bow for a couple of hours several times a week through the summer does put extra strain on my wrist, and the material is a bit bulky, so I’m hoping a scan of my hand and the bow grip can create something that will fit perfectly, be more comfortable, last longer and not get sweaty and smelly!
I’ll see what happens tomorrow, hopefully something positive re: the printed splints, which will give me so much more stability and support over time; apparently the scans can be done with a smartphone app – well of course they can!
Not really looking forward to the injection, but I’m sure it won’t be much more uncomfortable than the tattoo I spent four hours having done on the back of my calf yesterday… 😖

I have had both done as a former intensive ww Kayaker. Thigs should get better whn the swelling goes down, Do you have any swelling at the elbow too?

I crashed in the halfpipe at Tignes a couple of weeks before the 2nd operation. I absolutely mullered my wrist, bending it right back with a nasty crunch, to the extent that I initially thought I’d broken it. I also forced so much snow into my left ear that I knocked a perfect cast of my ear out into the palm of my hand!

Anyway, when the pain subsided – hours, not days – my wrist felt as good as new. When I contacted the surgeon and said “I’m cured!” he wasn’t having any of it and I still went under the knife!

Thumb etc could be trigger finger. Not directly related to Carpal Tunnel issues but I assume I’ve had so many knocks and injuries to my hands it’s just another thing to sort.
Had both hands operated on last year, it sucks but the ‘pins and needles’ (which had turned into full numbness and pain and I thought it was chest / heart getting worse for years esp. riding bikes and using keyboard) has thankfully gone away. Tried lots of fixes / alleviation but getting the operations solved it immediately.

Currently trying highest strength Voltarol to stop thumbs and fingers locking up.

TroutWrestler
Free Member
Do you have any swelling at the elbow too?

the initial pain was all in my elbow , felt like really bad tennis elbow and I couldn’t stretch or extend my arm at all, as in too much pain… the injury actually stemmed from me decorating my stairwell which is 5 metres high and so had to hire a stair scaffold to reach the top, it was me pulling myself up the scaffold by my left arm while holding a paint tray in the other hand !! … the fact I cant bend my thumb at all is my biggest concern, simple things like releasing the hand brake and even possibly not being able to grip the bars on my bike !!
Elbow pain isn’t too bad now but seems all in my wrist now , hence no feelings in fingers ….. sat here with a cold compress on it to see if it helps …….. Back to work tomorrow moving 47kg gas bottles around and getting huge wheelie bins on and off my bin truck !

Sorry to hear this.
If you can’t actively bend your thumb at the interphalangeal joint you need to be seen in person by someone who can make a diagnosis and come up with a treatment plan sooner rather than later.
Very happy to help if you’re near Sheffield / Rotherham (where I work as a consultant hand & wrist surgeon)

[Thanks for the advise , bit too far I’m afraid as live east Yorkshire coast, I’ve got another doctor’s appointment on 6th march so hopefully something gets diagnosed then …. thanks again]

Thanks for the advise , bit too far I’m afraid as live east Yorkshire coast, I’ve got another doctor’s appointment on 6th march so hopefully something gets diagnosed then …. thanks again

Thanks for the advise , bit too far I’m afraid as live east Yorkshire coast, I’ve got another doctor’s appointment on 6th march so hopefully something gets diagnosed then …. thanks again

I’ve had tingling fingers, tennis elbow, golfers elbow, trigger finger, pain at the back of my arm, and also a funny bone sensation at the back of my elbow when touching my elbow pads, all in the last two years.

Before doing anything rash like an op go and see a, or several in case you can’t find a good one, massage therapist, or similair, to see if they can find any problems associated with trigger points – I had several issues including one in my pec minor, and treating them all provided relief.

I think the root cause might be something in my neck affecting that median nerve.

In answer to the original question yes for the right hand but no for the left. The right carpal tunnel gives me grief when I do daft things with it but recovers. The left became chronic. I had a test to confirm where the loss of nerve signal and speed was and an operation was deemed necessary on the left hand and optional on the right. I chose left only, the operation went fine and I fully recovered the use of my left hand. 10 years on the left hand is still great and the right one best not used for vibrating power tools, rock climbing… . I also had a trigger finger, a single cortisone injection cured that.

I intermittently get terrible carpal tunnel pain. It isn’t so bad now as I’ve changed the job type I do, but when I first started my first “proper” job in archaeology I would wake up and my thumb and two fingers would somehow be numb but also excruciatingly sore. I remember sitting in the cinema one weekend with shooting pains from it right up my arm, really bad.

For it just kinda went away after a while, with doctors visits and wearing a wrist brace at night and where possible whilst working (not super ergonomic to shovel with). I still get flare ups but nowhere near as bad, more just tingly and skin numbness. When it’s cold I have trigger finger on my middle finger so it kinda snaps open and shut. Biking doesn’t seem to affect it at all.

Guy I work with has just gone through the operation to get the nerves re-done on his palm and whilst it put him out of action for a while he hasn’t had any bother since. Though I think think can reduce mobility of the hand later in life – may be wrong.

Sounds like your mate left it too late. That’s why the OP needs his nerves testing. I was told permanent nerve damage that would be hard to correct was probable without surgery so I went to a place that chopped the offeding ligamentwith an endoscope. Dorry about the crap typing and word order but it’ impossible to dee what I’m typing behind the coffee machine pop up surgery

Just to resurrect this thread, Will the symptons be worse riding on the hoods of a drop handle bike rather than the flat bars of a mountain bike?

Have had pins and needles in my sleep for 18 months or so, went to the doctors who said if it gets worse then surgery, but at the moment, suck it up buttercup. Never really bothered me during the day, or on the either road or mtb for that matter. But the last 2 weeks, my arm is sore from the elbow down, like i’ve banged my funny bone and its keeping me awake at night. I’ve ordered a splint to see if it helps at night, and i’ll attempt to ring the doctors…

Keeping your hands in an unnatural position for hours can’t help, flat bars should at least be a little more natural. But unless you are riding very close behind someone do you need to keep your hands on the hoods for long?

My GP once diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome and suggested that the only effective treatment would be an op. I decided to try acupuncture first and two sessions cured it a hundred percent (mostly the first session) it never returned. Although despite my GP suggesting an op it wasn’t as severe as it appears to be in some people.

I’m 100% sure the carpal tunnel compression was worse with drop bars. However it was power tools that put it into a permanent issue that needed operations.

I’ve also been diagnosed with trigger finger, RH thumb was worst /  locked and a cortisone injection two weeks ago has massively improved it.

I had terrible problems from constant mousing.. A gell wrist rest with an Ankor ergo mouse helped 200% but it wasn’t an overnight fix, it takes a few months to feel the benefits.

Also.. I know people turn thier eyes a power balls, but I’ve also found them to be effective in combination with the above.

Have you tried opening up the tunnel with some wrist stretches? Might be more successful for a mouse inflicted symptom than other injuries though.

Hard to explain and google will probably have a video but basically open problem hand out, palm up with fingers together. then using the other hand bend the hand attached to the problem wrist back by placing it on the fingers this should stretch the inside bit of your wrist

I think bouldering has ‘cured’ me, had the nerve tests and various physio and was starting to get really worried that I’d have to jack in my IT job, lying awake at night with aching arms and fingers. Regular climbing, maybe the movement and loading the joints/tendons carefully and it’s almost completely gone, only really get mild symptoms occasionally if I overdo it at work without breaks.

I started getting tingling all down my right arm recently.  I’ve mostly alleviated it by a combination of altering sti position (running much further up the bend than you’d think), flared bars, foam grips under bar tape, raising bar position, shortening stem, different sti units (the claris ones had a big hard lump right in the centre of my palm).

Each change made things better, though some combinations (big flare bars with micro new shifters) didn’t work initially but I’ll try that again with the higher sti position when I get chance.

Basically trying to reduce and shift any pressure points you may have..

Oh, edited to add I’ve just switched back to bigger tyres.  Was running 28s but the problems started a while after downsizing to them from 35s.  Put the 35s back on today as another measure to try to isolate the vibrations. Plus the roads really are in terrible condition at the moment!

I’ve had various wrist and elbow problems over the years, some diagnosed as carpal tunnel and tennis elbow. They have ranged from intensely painful to damn annoying. Every one has been sorted out through massage, acupuncture or acupressure. The cause is always some sort of repetitive strain injury, normally from work eg mouse, hand tools etc or over doing kayaking, especially in cold conditions. Mobile use is a massive problem for RSIs

In most cases, relief was very quick from the first treatment like Ernie mentioned. Nowadays if I have a problem I change my working position, tools or whatever. Then I massage the fore arms and neck/shoulder areas. I’ve never had to give up doing anything or had injections. It is almost always the forearms where the muscle tightness is the problem, in turn affecting nerves causing numbness, tingles and electric shock type symptoms in wrists

I have a little tub of massage oil but you don’t need it to effectively massage. It does help though. A massage therapist is money well sent imo. Plus you will learn the techniques you can do yourself

I think it is a matter of seeing what is comfortable and what isn’t.

I have recently developed tingling which came onto full thumb pain when I grabbed the steering wheel on my daughters first driving lesson a couple of weeks ago. My symptoms seemed to start with some tightness between the shoulder blades a couple of months ago, I think I had slept in a bad position.

I find cycling is fine. I was climbing last night and it was all great until I tried to reach my right hand across to the left side of my body and I got the shooting pain so I had to adjust some reaches. it was painful in the night so I need to get a splint to sleep in.

Hey all, just a heads up for anyone going through similar stuff. After dealing with carpel tunnel issues since new year, making work very difficult and riding of any kind nearly impossible. No physio was helping, I was doing all the right things but nothing was improving it, just getting worse. They sent me for an MRI scan and it came back with loads of fluid/inflammation in the tunnels, and got sent to see a rheumatologist. First appointment with him on Tuesday gone, and with a bit of poking/ultrasound etc he diagnosed it as Psoriatic Arthritis. So that’s a great thing to be told at 38 when you service suspension for a living and spend all your spare time riding bikes. I got given a steroid injection into what was currently the worse wrist, yesterday (day after) I couldn’t move it but settling down now. Back in two weeks for the other wrist and a closer look at extra bloods and to discuss what I want to do about it. Sadly looking at lifestyle adjustments I already do most of them, diet is good, exercise a lot, sleep well, non smoker, low drinker (now cut out totally) so I’m not sure where I have to go except drugs.

So I guess my point is, sometimes your carpel tunnel syndrome isn’t just a normal ouch thing that just needs physio or surgery