Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, What is that?

What is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful disorder of the wrist and hand. The carpal tunnel is a narrow tunnel formed by the bones and other tissues of your wrist. This tunnel protects your median nerve. The median nerve gives you feeling in your thumb, and index, middle and ring fingers. But when other tissues in the carpal tunnel, such as ligaments and tendons, get swollen or inflamed, they press against the median nerve. That pressure can make part of your hand hurt or feel numb.

What causes carpal tunnel syndrome?
Doing the same hand movements over and over can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. It’s most common in people whose jobs require pinching or gripping with the wrist held bent. People at risk include people who use computers, carpenters, grocery checkers, assembly-line workers, meat packers, musicians and mechanics. Hobbies such as gardening, needlework, golfing and canoeing can sometimes bring on the symptoms.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is linked to other things too. It may be caused by an injury to the wrist, such as a fracture. Or it may be caused by a disease such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or thyroid disease. Carpal tunnel syndrome is also common during the last few months of pregnancy.

Symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome

* Numbness or tingling in your hand and fingers, especially the thumb and index and middle fingers.

* Pain in your wrist, palm or forearm.

* More numbness or pain at night than during the day. The pain may be so bad it wakes you up. You may shake or rub your hand to get relief.

* More pain when you use your hand or wrist more.

* Trouble gripping objects.

* Weakness in your thumb.

How is carpal tunnel syndrome diagnosed?
Your doctor will probably ask you about your symptoms. He or she may examine you and ask you how you use your hands. Your doctor may also do these tests:

* Your doctor may tap the inside of your wrist. You may feel pain or a sensation like an electric shock.
* Your doctor may ask you to bend your wrist down for 1 minute to see if this causes symptoms.
* Your doctor may have you get a nerve conduction test or an electromyography (EMG) test to see whether the nerves and muscles in your arm and hand show the typical effects of carpal tunnel syndrome.

How serious is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome usually isn’t serious. With treatment, the pain will usually go away and you’ll have no lasting damage to your hand or wrist.

How is carpal tunnel syndrome treated?
If carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by a medical problem, your doctor will probably first treat that problem.

Your doctor may ask you to rest your wrist or change how you use your hand. Your doctor may also ask you to wear a splint on your wrist. The splint keeps your wrist from moving but lets your hand do most of what it normally does. A splint can help ease the pain of carpal tunnel syndrome, especially at night.

Putting ice on your wrist, massaging the area and doing stretching exercises may help too.

Tips on relieving carpal tunnel syndrome

* Prop up your arm with pillows when you lie down.
* Avoid using your hand too much.
* Find a new way to use your hand by using a different tool.
* Try to use the other hand more often.
* Avoid bending your wrists down for long periods.

Can I prevent carpal tunnel syndrome?
Yes. See the box below for some tips on preventing carpal tunnel syndrome.

Many products you can buy–such as wrist rests–are supposed to ease symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. No one has proven that these products really prevent wrist problems. Some people may have less pain and numbness after using these products, but other people may have increased pain and numbness.

Things that may help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome

* Lose weight if you’re overweight.
* Get treatment for any disease you have that may cause carpal tunnel syndrome.
* If you do the same tasks with your hands over and over, try not to bend, extend or twist your hands for long periods.
* Don’t work with your arms too close or too far from your body.
* Don’t rest your wrists on hard surfaces for long periods.
* Switch hands during work tasks.
* Make sure your tools aren’t too big for your hands.
* Take regular breaks from repeated hand movements to give your hands and wrists time to rest.
* Don’t sit or stand in the same position all day.
* If you use a keyboard a lot, adjust the height of your chair so that your forearms are level with your keyboard and you don’t have to flex your wrists to type.

Why am I easy to Get Tired...?

Getting plenty of sleep but still exhausted? Before you blame your multi-tasking, super-woman lifestyle, learn more about what might be at the root of your unexplained fatigue.

We are in the midst of a global energy crisis but it has nothing to do with oil. The problem is unexplained fatigue.

“I’m so tired; I just can’t do what I used to do.”

“I’d love to go but honestly, I just don’t have the energy.”

“Sex? You mean right now?”

If you’re like most women, these phrases have become mantras, the echo of our collective yawn growing louder every day.

“The single biggest complaint I hear from my patients, day in and day out, is fatigue,” says cardiologist Nieca Goldberg, MD, Director of the NYU Medical Center Women’s Heart Program and associate professor at the NYU School of Medicine.

Of course, for some of us the problem is simply multi-tasking to the max and not getting enough sleep, or good quality sleep. “If you’re continually logging in just 5 or 6 hours a night, it’s going to catch up with you, no matter your age,” says Rebecca Amaru, MD, clinical instructor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.

But if you are getting a healthy 7 to 8 hours a night and you’re still tired, Goldberg says it’s time for a check-up to uncover the causes for fatigue.

“If your fatigue goes on for more than a week and there is no explanation for feeling tired, then yes, see your doctor,” says Goldberg.

While occasionally fatigue may be a sign of a serious illness, experts say most often it’s caused by a minor problem, with a relatively easy fix.

To help you zero in on why you can’t stop yawning, here are 7 hidden causes of fatigue — potential health problems you should discuss with your doctor.

Fatigue Cause # 1: Anemia

“If you are in your reproductive years, and particularly if you experience heavy menstrual cycles, have fibroid tumors or uterine polyps, or if you’ve recently given birth, the blood loss may have caused you to develop anemia — a leading cause of fatigue in women,” says Amaru.

Problems occur, she says, when the bleeding leads to a deficiency of hemoglobin, the iron-rich protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to other parts of your body. When your tissues and organs don’t get enough oxygen, she says, the result is fatigue.

Other causes of anemia include internal bleeding, or a deficiency of iron, folic acid, or vitamin B12. Anemia may also be caused by chronic diseases like kidney disease, for example. Symptoms can include dizziness, feeling cold, and irritability.

To confirm a diagnosis of anemia, your physician will give you a blood test. Treatment, she says, usually consists of iron supplements if iron deficiency is the cause, and adding iron-rich foods — such as spinach, broccoli, and red meat — to your diet.

The good news: With effective treatment, your fatigue should begin to lift in thirty days or less.

Fatigue Cause # 2: Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)

If you are generally sluggish, run down, and even a little depressed, Goldberg says the problem may be a slow thyroid, also known as hypothyroidism. The thyroid is a small, butterfly shaped gland that sits at the base of your neck and controls your metabolism, the speed at which your body operates.

“I believe that undiagnosed thyroid disorder is one of the major female health problems in this country. I think it is even more widespread than anyone realizes,” says Goldberg.

According to the American Thyroid Foundation, by age 60 approximately 17% of all women will have a thyroid disorder and most won’t know it. The most common cause, they say, is an autoimmune disorder known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This condition causes the body to destroy the cells responsible for producing thyroxin and other hormones secreted by the thyroid gland. The result is hypothyroidism, or a slow metabolism.

Blood tests known as T3 and T4 will detect thyroid hormones. If these hormones are low, Goldberg says synthetic hormones can bring you up to speed and you should begin to feel better fairly rapidly.

Fatigue Cause # 3: Undiagnosed Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)

Although most women associate a urinary tract infection with symptoms such as burning or urgency, Goldberg says in some instances fatigue may be your only clue.

“Not every woman has obvious symptoms of a UTI. Some have no symptoms or mild symptoms that go unnoticed, except for the fatigue,” she says.

In most instances, a UTI is caused by bacteria in the urinary tract, often the result of improper bathroom hygiene (wiping back to front, for example). Sexual intercourse can increase the risk because it can push bacteria from the vagina into the urethra.

If your physician suspects that you have a UTI, your urine will be tested. Treatment is quick and easy, and usually involves an oral antibiotic medication. Goldberg says the fatigue will lift within a week or less.

If your symptoms return, get tested again, she says, because in some women, UTI’s are chronic. If this is the case, talk to your doctor about preventive care, including low dose antibiotics.

Fatigue Cause # 4: Caffeine Overload

Many of us grab a coffee or cola for a quick burst of energy, but for some women, caffeine can have the opposite effect.

In an article published in the journal US Pharmacist, author W. Stephen Pray, PhD, RPh, reports that caffeine is a stimulant, but if you take too much, the tables can turn.

“In some patients, continued abuse results in fatigue,” according to Pray. And if you think this means you simply require more caffeine to get the kick, this isn’t the case. “Any attempts to solve the problem by increasing caffeine intake causes the fatigue to worsen,” he says.

The solution: Eliminate as much caffeine from your diet as possible. This means not only cutting out coffee. Chocolate, tea, soda and even some medications also contain caffeine and could be causing unexplained fatigue.

Fatigue Cause # 5: Food Allergies

While food is supposed to give us energy, some doctors believe hidden food intolerances — or allergies — can do the opposite. According to Rudy Rivera, MD, author of Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat, even mild food intolerance can leave you feeling sleepy. Eat the offending food long enough and you could find yourself feeling continually exhausted.

“Evidence indicates food intolerance as a cause of fatigue, and even suggests that fatigue may be an early warning sign of food intolerance,” he says.

If you suspect that food may be behind all that yawning, Rivera says to start with an elimination diet, cutting out foods that cause you to feel sleepy within 10 to 30 minutes of eating them. You can also talk to your doctor about a food allergy test — or invest in a home test such as ALCAT — which may help you identify the offending foods.

Fatigue Cause # 6: Sleep Apnea

If you’re not getting enough sleep, it stands to reason you’ll be tired. But what if you don’t know that you aren’t getting sufficient sleep? This is often the case with a condition called sleep apnea — a sleep disorder that causes you to momentarily stop breathing, often many times during the night. Each time you stop breathing, you awaken just long enough to disrupt your sleep cycle, usually without being aware of it. Your only clue, says Goldberg, is that you experience constant fatigue no matter how many hours you sleep each night.

According to Goldberg, sleep apnea, which is caused by an upper airway obstruction, often occurs in women who are overweight or obese. Snoring is often a sign of sleep apnea. Diagnosis requires a visit to a sleep lab, or to a doctor specializing in sleep apnea.

If you have sleep apnea, your physician will recommend lifestyle changes, including losing weight and quitting smoking. Medical treatment includes devices that keep airway passages open while you sleep. In extreme cases, surgery may be necessary to ensure proper airway flow. Left untreated, sleep apnea can increase your risk of stroke or heart attack.

Fatigue Cause # 7: Undiagnosed Heart Disease

If you find yourself becoming exhausted after activity that used to be easy, it may be time to talk to your doctor about the possibility of heart disease.

According to Goldberg, when overwhelming fatigue sets in after ordinary tasks — such as vacuuming the house, doing yard work, or commuting from work each day — your heart may be sending out an SOS that it needs medical attention.

“This doesn’t mean that you should panic every time you yawn,” says Goldberg. “Most of the time, fatigue is not the first sign of heart disease, and it’s usually linked to something far less serious.”

At the same time, Goldberg points out that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women. “If fatigue following activity is significant, and no other possible reason comes to mind, see your doctor for a check-up,” she advises. If your fatigue is related to your heart, medication or treatment procedures can usually help correct the problem, reduce the fatigue, and restore your energy.

Getting Tired...?

Getting plenty of sleep but still exhausted? Before you blame your multi-tasking, super-woman lifestyle, learn more about what might be at the root of your unexplained fatigue.

We are in the midst of a global energy crisis but it has nothing to do with oil. The problem is unexplained fatigue.

“I’m so tired; I just can’t do what I used to do.”

“I’d love to go but honestly, I just don’t have the energy.”

“Sex? You mean right now?”

If you’re like most women, these phrases have become mantras, the echo of our collective yawn growing louder every day.

“The single biggest complaint I hear from my patients, day in and day out, is fatigue,” says cardiologist Nieca Goldberg, MD, Director of the NYU Medical Center Women’s Heart Program and associate professor at the NYU School of Medicine.

Of course, for some of us the problem is simply multi-tasking to the max and not getting enough sleep, or good quality sleep. “If you’re continually logging in just 5 or 6 hours a night, it’s going to catch up with you, no matter your age,” says Rebecca Amaru, MD, clinical instructor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.

But if you are getting a healthy 7 to 8 hours a night and you’re still tired, Goldberg says it’s time for a check-up to uncover the causes for fatigue.

“If your fatigue goes on for more than a week and there is no explanation for feeling tired, then yes, see your doctor,” says Goldberg.

While occasionally fatigue may be a sign of a serious illness, experts say most often it’s caused by a minor problem, with a relatively easy fix.

To help you zero in on why you can’t stop yawning, here are 7 hidden causes of fatigue — potential health problems you should discuss with your doctor.

Fatigue Cause # 1: Anemia

“If you are in your reproductive years, and particularly if you experience heavy menstrual cycles, have fibroid tumors or uterine polyps, or if you’ve recently given birth, the blood loss may have caused you to develop anemia — a leading cause of fatigue in women,” says Amaru.

Problems occur, she says, when the bleeding leads to a deficiency of hemoglobin, the iron-rich protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to other parts of your body. When your tissues and organs don’t get enough oxygen, she says, the result is fatigue.

Other causes of anemia include internal bleeding, or a deficiency of iron, folic acid, or vitamin B12. Anemia may also be caused by chronic diseases like kidney disease, for example. Symptoms can include dizziness, feeling cold, and irritability.

To confirm a diagnosis of anemia, your physician will give you a blood test. Treatment, she says, usually consists of iron supplements if iron deficiency is the cause, and adding iron-rich foods — such as spinach, broccoli, and red meat — to your diet.

The good news: With effective treatment, your fatigue should begin to lift in thirty days or less.

Fatigue Cause # 2: Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)

If you are generally sluggish, run down, and even a little depressed, Goldberg says the problem may be a slow thyroid, also known as hypothyroidism. The thyroid is a small, butterfly shaped gland that sits at the base of your neck and controls your metabolism, the speed at which your body operates.

“I believe that undiagnosed thyroid disorder is one of the major female health problems in this country. I think it is even more widespread than anyone realizes,” says Goldberg.

According to the American Thyroid Foundation, by age 60 approximately 17% of all women will have a thyroid disorder and most won’t know it. The most common cause, they say, is an autoimmune disorder known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This condition causes the body to destroy the cells responsible for producing thyroxin and other hormones secreted by the thyroid gland. The result is hypothyroidism, or a slow metabolism.

Blood tests known as T3 and T4 will detect thyroid hormones. If these hormones are low, Goldberg says synthetic hormones can bring you up to speed and you should begin to feel better fairly rapidly.

Fatigue Cause # 3: Undiagnosed Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)

Although most women associate a urinary tract infection with symptoms such as burning or urgency, Goldberg says in some instances fatigue may be your only clue.

“Not every woman has obvious symptoms of a UTI. Some have no symptoms or mild symptoms that go unnoticed, except for the fatigue,” she says.

In most instances, a UTI is caused by bacteria in the urinary tract, often the result of improper bathroom hygiene (wiping back to front, for example). Sexual intercourse can increase the risk because it can push bacteria from the vagina into the urethra.

If your physician suspects that you have a UTI, your urine will be tested. Treatment is quick and easy, and usually involves an oral antibiotic medication. Goldberg says the fatigue will lift within a week or less.

If your symptoms return, get tested again, she says, because in some women, UTI’s are chronic. If this is the case, talk to your doctor about preventive care, including low dose antibiotics.

Fatigue Cause # 4: Caffeine Overload

Many of us grab a coffee or cola for a quick burst of energy, but for some women, caffeine can have the opposite effect.

In an article published in the journal US Pharmacist, author W. Stephen Pray, PhD, RPh, reports that caffeine is a stimulant, but if you take too much, the tables can turn.

“In some patients, continued abuse results in fatigue,” according to Pray. And if you think this means you simply require more caffeine to get the kick, this isn’t the case. “Any attempts to solve the problem by increasing caffeine intake causes the fatigue to worsen,” he says.

The solution: Eliminate as much caffeine from your diet as possible. This means not only cutting out coffee. Chocolate, tea, soda and even some medications also contain caffeine and could be causing unexplained fatigue.

Fatigue Cause # 5: Food Allergies

While food is supposed to give us energy, some doctors believe hidden food intolerances — or allergies — can do the opposite. According to Rudy Rivera, MD, author of Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat, even mild food intolerance can leave you feeling sleepy. Eat the offending food long enough and you could find yourself feeling continually exhausted.

“Evidence indicates food intolerance as a cause of fatigue, and even suggests that fatigue may be an early warning sign of food intolerance,” he says.

If you suspect that food may be behind all that yawning, Rivera says to start with an elimination diet, cutting out foods that cause you to feel sleepy within 10 to 30 minutes of eating them. You can also talk to your doctor about a food allergy test — or invest in a home test such as ALCAT — which may help you identify the offending foods.

Fatigue Cause # 6: Sleep Apnea

If you’re not getting enough sleep, it stands to reason you’ll be tired. But what if you don’t know that you aren’t getting sufficient sleep? This is often the case with a condition called sleep apnea — a sleep disorder that causes you to momentarily stop breathing, often many times during the night. Each time you stop breathing, you awaken just long enough to disrupt your sleep cycle, usually without being aware of it. Your only clue, says Goldberg, is that you experience constant fatigue no matter how many hours you sleep each night.

According to Goldberg, sleep apnea, which is caused by an upper airway obstruction, often occurs in women who are overweight or obese. Snoring is often a sign of sleep apnea. Diagnosis requires a visit to a sleep lab, or to a doctor specializing in sleep apnea.

If you have sleep apnea, your physician will recommend lifestyle changes, including losing weight and quitting smoking. Medical treatment includes devices that keep airway passages open while you sleep. In extreme cases, surgery may be necessary to ensure proper airway flow. Left untreated, sleep apnea can increase your risk of stroke or heart attack.

Fatigue Cause # 7: Undiagnosed Heart Disease

If you find yourself becoming exhausted after activity that used to be easy, it may be time to talk to your doctor about the possibility of heart disease.

According to Goldberg, when overwhelming fatigue sets in after ordinary tasks — such as vacuuming the house, doing yard work, or commuting from work each day — your heart may be sending out an SOS that it needs medical attention.

“This doesn’t mean that you should panic every time you yawn,” says Goldberg. “Most of the time, fatigue is not the first sign of heart disease, and it’s usually linked to something far less serious.”

At the same time, Goldberg points out that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women. “If fatigue following activity is significant, and no other possible reason comes to mind, see your doctor for a check-up,” she advises. If your fatigue is related to your heart, medication or treatment procedures can usually help correct the problem, reduce the fatigue, and restore your energy.

The Struggling Grant System

Grants have been intended to further research in all realms, most notably the cancer world, although the past 40 years have demonstrated an obvious decrease in grant funding, leading to fewer research breakthroughs in the industry. Top federal cancer officials have noted that the grant system needs to be changed because of the cautious steps, which the many cancer institutes take when funding research, but steps have yet to be implemented to curb this fact.

Many top scientists and researchers have come up with novel ideas that can either lead to developing more drugs to combat cancer, or lead to a further understanding of the causes of cancer. However, many grant programs refuse to fund such endeavors because they don’t contribute wholeheartedly towards winning the fight against cancer. Many of these industries are still hoping to discover an overarching cure for cancer, and devote more time and money to this single endeavor. Additionally, even some of the studies that can prove to be helpful in the cancer world are denied because of the lack of further research; these scientists cannot receive the proper research without grants and many are therefore caught in this catch-22 of sorts.

Cancer research was supposed to have been much more developed than it is when this type of funding originally began 40 years ago, though it was hard to predict the massive impact cancer has had through modern society. With the many different forms and many different mutations, it has become increasingly difficult to develop an overarching “cure” for cancer. Many of the breakthroughs in the industry have come about as a result of outside monetary funding and donors who contribute large amounts to specific causes. Most of the funding for major grant sites additionally come from walkathons and memorial donations rather than a larger industry. The grant review committees are also becoming increasingly cautious with their money because of the small amount of funds they have to submit for research; if they do not see noticeable promise in specific research ventures, they will reject the plan. This has hindered many further steps in cancer research because of the smaller projects that can help towards gaining a better insight into the susceptibility of cancer.

While there are many ventures throughout the nation that require more funds than the cancer industry does at a faster pace, there should at least be additional funding that supports these endeavors. For a disease, which has afflicted thousands of Americans over the past decades, we have yet to make the cancer industry a top priority in any government funding. This may not change any time soon, but recognizing the fact that research is not moving at a fast pace due to this lack of funds for grants is important towards gaining a better system to support this research.

This post was contributed by Megan Jones, who writes about the nursing colleges. She welcomes your feedback at Meg.Jones0310@gmail.com