Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) signs and symptoms are fairly concrete, with patients experiencing numbness, tingling, paresthesia and pain in the thumb, index, middle and sometimes one half of the ring finger as well as the anterior portion of the wrist. (These are the areas supplied by the Median nerve)

Loss of strength in the hands / fingers, pain, aching, swelling, diminished coordination and often a need to massage hands, wrists and arms can also be listed as secondary symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome and are usually a result of a more long-term chronic condition. (Always look for the main / classic side-effects of the disorder.)

Although the main signs of the disorder are consistent, they may vary in intensity and location from one patient to the next as one patient may experience two of the symptoms in the thumb, index and middle finger while the next patient may only experience one symptom in the index and one-half of the ring finger. Some patients experience the slow onset of symptoms while the next may feel like their hands were debilitated overnight. So keep a close watch on your condition to keep it from going on too long before it is addressed as a chronic injury can lead to more severe dysfunction and injuries like Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), a condition that can result in debilitating pain and nerve damage.

Consulting you physician instead of self-diagnosing is always important as well as there are other more serious diseases, such as diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis that can cause the same or similar symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Most often doctors and therapist tend to use the modern testing procedures, such as nerve conduction and muscle velocity tests. Since these tests are often painful and tend to have a poor rate of accurate diagnosis, ask your doctor perform the manual tests such as the Phalen's, Reverse Phalen's and Tinel Sign. These are actually more accurate and can be conducted immediately within the same office visit.

Author: Jeff P. Anliker, LMT -Therapist, Inventor & Author.