Pain, numbness, and tingling in the fingers are all symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Seeking medical treatment quickly could mean the difference between medications and surgery.

Carpal tunnel syndrome affects thousands of people all over the world. It can be mild, causing minor occasional discomfort, or severe, causing debilitating pain through the hand and making even the simplest tasks almost unbearable. There are different conditions that can cause carpal tunnel. The connection between repetitive work with the hands and carpal tunnel is still not one hundred percent certain, but it is considered a risk. Carpal tunnel can also be caused by things like pregnancy, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and edema. In many instances, the cause of carpal tunnel is not known.

Regardless of the cause, there are several symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome that people should be aware of and watching for. Catching carpal tunnel early means getting treatment earlier and this might mean less pain later down the road. Some of the more common symptoms are likely to focus in the fingers. These include pain, numbness, weakness, and tingling. These symptoms will usually appear in the thumb, pointer, middle, and part of the ring finger. These can happen to both hands, and one hand will usually be more painful than the other. Carpal tunnel syndrome can affect a person' sleeping patterns by causing them to wake up from the pain or tingling.

The symptoms will usually get worse as a person uses the affected hand. The pain can even begin to travel up the arm to the shoulder. Severe carpal tunnel goes beyond the symptoms listed and begins to make it difficult to grip with the hand. Normally, severe cases of carpal tunnel can only be relieved by surgery. There are medicines and other prescribed therapies that a doctor might order before going with a surgical procedure. Even with surgery, some of the affects of the syndrome on the hand will be permanent. It is important to seek medical attention if carpal tunnel syndrome might be happening. Doctors may prescribe wrist braces to immobilize the wrist and prevent the carpal tunnel from worsening. Steroid shots, along with pain relievers, may also be prescribed. The different forms of treatment vary and will be based upon the severity of the syndrome.