Carpal Tunnel and Casual Observations
I still find myself surprised when I see a person with a brace on their
wrist, it never fails. It could be the waitress at my favorite
restaurant or the cashier at the supermarket, but that little wrist
brace always gives me pause and compels me to ask the question, "what's
wrong with your wrist?"
Almost to a person, the answer is: carpal tunnel. But the thing that
surprises me more is that the person usually says how much pain they're
still in, despite the brace. Maybe it's because their work is so
stressful on the wrist? Serving tables is hard work and holding a couple
of heavy plates with one hand can put a considerable strain on the
wrist.
For many patients, the brace can be a life saver, getting us back to
work and providing for our families. But for many others, they don't
solve the problem. That's because simply limiting motion, while good in
theory, could make the muscles of the wrist weaker. Also, wrist problems
aren't always just a problem in the wrist. If the wrist and hand pain
is actually coming from a pinched nerve in the neck, then the wrist
brace will do little to help.
The important thing is to get the problem checked out. Is a small bone
of the wrist out of its normal position? Is the mobility of the wrist
asymmetrical and uneven? Is there a double-crush problem, with a pinched
nerve not just in the carpal tunnel, but also where the nerves exit the
neck area?
Our clinic does our best to help the pain of carpal tunnel. Usually a
comprehensive approach is needed and we may need to adjust the bones of
your neck and wrist to help restore proper alignment. If the vertebrae
are twisted in the neck, they can narrow the openings where the delicate
nerves emerge and travel down the arm to the hand. Sometimes the
posture of the neck is affected and there is a loss of the normal
forward curve of the neck. This can cause a stretch to the spinal cord
and nerve roots.
If possible, we try to limit the use of braces and instead focus on
strengthening the muscles of the forearm, or use deep tissue massage and
stretching to increase muscle flexibility.