Treatment
Traditional treatment approaches to CTS include behavior modification, physical therapy, rehabilitation and surgery. It is essential that pressure be taken off the nerve so the nerve tissue can heal on its own. This will usually be accomplished with activity modification. However, damaged nerve tissue is very slow to heal. As a result, it may take some time for the injury to recover, especially if the condition is chronic.

There are numerous interventions that have been proposed in the workplace, from workstation re-design to wearing of protective devices, such as wrist splints.

Other treatment methods include corticosteroid injections, oral steroids and various non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). While anti-inflammatory medications may offer short-term relief through pain management and reduction of inflammation, they won’t address the primary biomechanical factors that led to the problem in the first place. There are benefits to some of these approaches, but none are proven strategies for preventing work-related CTS.

If these conservative treatments are unsuccessful, surgery may be prescribed. However, medical literature reports indicate that the success rate for carpal-tunnel surgery is only fair for reasons ranging from improper, hasty diagnosis to poor and improper surgical techniques.

Still, the most commonly used surgical technique for CTS is the release of the ligament. This procedure is performed by cutting the transverse carpal ligament in order to reduce compression of the tunnel’s contents against the ligament. This procedure is controversial because of the possibility of compromised wrist biomechanics after surgery. In addition, post-surgical scarring may further compress or bind the median nerve, causing the symptoms to recur.

References