Content

• Steps

Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the median nerve in the center of the palm of the hand and forearm is constricted or pinched. This syndrome can cause inflammation, pain, numbness, tingling, and a feeling of compression in the fingers, wrists and arms. There are many causes of carpal tunnel syndrome such as underlying pathology, constant wrist use, trauma or surgery on the wrist. Diagnosis and treatment can help relieve symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome at home

1. 

   Evaluate your risk for carpal tunnel syndrome. Risk assessment helps you better understand the symptoms of the disease, thereby diagnosing and treating the disease better. Evaluate whether you have one or more of the following risk factors for carpal tunnel syndrome:
   • Gender and age: Women tend to have carpal tunnel syndrome higher than men, and it usually occurs between the ages of 30 and 60.
   • Occupation: Some jobs that require constant wrist use, such as working in a factory or assembling a chain. These jobs often increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • Potential medical conditions: People with metabolic disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, menopause, obesity, thyroid disorder, kidney failure, or diabetes are often at an increased risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • Lifestyle: smoking, consuming a lot of salt, being sedentary are also causes of carpal tunnel syndrome.

2. 

   
   
   Recognize the symptoms. If you notice one of the following five symptoms in your wrist, hand or arm, you may have carpal tunnel syndrome:
   • Tingling in your hands, fingers or wrists.
   • Numb hands, fingers, or wrists.
   • Swollen wrists.
   • Pain in the hand, finger or wrist.
   • Weak hands.

3. 

   
   
   Keep track of symptoms. Monitoring symptoms helps diagnose and treat disease better. Your doctor can also better diagnose the condition if you have a detailed medical record of this syndrome.
   • Symptoms usually appear slowly.
   • Initially, symptoms usually appear at night. But when the disease gets worse, symptoms appear during the day.
   • Symptoms will not improve over time (unlike with temporary trauma) and become more and more severe.

4. 

   
   
   Trials Phalen. This is a simple test that can help diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome. There are several ways to use the Phalen test that you can try:
   • Sit at a table and put your elbows on the table.
   • Flex your wrists as much as possible to increase carpal tunnel pressure.
   • Hold this position for at least a minute.
   • Another test is to put the backs of your hands together, fingers facing downwards (like a reverse prostration).
   • You are likely to be positive for carpal tunnel syndrome if you experience pain and itching in your hands, fingers or wrists, or numbness in your fingers, especially the thumb, index finger and part of your middle finger.

5. 

   Try other methods to help diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome. There are many trials to help diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome, but the specificity of these methods is questionable. Even so, you can still try the following methods:
   • The Tinel Sign test is done by patting your wrists and carpal tunnel with your finger or reflex hammer. A tingling sensation in the finger after tapping is believed to be positive for carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • The Garlic test is a procedure that temporarily increases pressure in the carpal tunnel by wrapping a blood pressure cuff on the biceps or forearms. The swollen blood pressure tape between the systolic and diastolic blood pressure will block the vein from returning from the arm and increase the blood flow in the arm. If symptoms appear later, you may be positive for carpal tunnel syndrome. However, do not use this method if you are uncomfortable using a blood pressure tape.
   • The hand lift test is done by raising your hand to your head for 2 minutes.If symptoms do appear, you are more likely to have carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • Durkan wrist compression test is directly pressing on the carpal tunnel to increase pressure. Ask someone else or use your thumb to press on your wrist. You may be positive for carpal tunnel syndrome if symptoms appear.

6. 

   Consider seeing a doctor. If your symptoms persist, get worse, get more intolerable pain, and work hard, you should see your doctor. Your doctor can diagnose and treat symptoms properly and rule out all the serious illnesses you might have. advertisement

Method 2 of 2: Carpal tunnel diagnosis in hospital

1. 

   Talk to your doctor about your symptoms. You should talk to your doctor about all your symptoms and medical history.
   • Remember that your doctor can better diagnose your condition if you speak it in detail and don't miss any symptoms.
   • Your doctor may refer you to a neurologist, surgery, orthopedic, or rheumatologist if needed for diagnosis or treatment.

2. 

   Health check. Your doctor will evaluate your wrists and hands. The doctor will press on a few points for signs of pain or numbness in the hand. Your doctor will also check for swelling, sensitivity, or weakness in your arms. If you experience severe pain, your doctor will perform additional tests to rule out other illnesses.
   • A preliminary and visual assessment of the area to be diagnosed is a must for giving direction for additional tests.
   • In the hospital, your doctor can also help you run Phalen test or other tests that can help diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome.

3. 

   Blood tests. Your doctor may take your blood and test it to rule out conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disease or other underlying medical conditions. By eliminating these diseases, your doctor can more accurately diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • After you have ruled out the disease with a blood test, you may be ordered to have imaging tests.

4. 

   Image test required. You or your doctor may order additional imaging tests such as X-rays or ultrasound. Imaging tests help diagnose disease and treat symptoms more effectively.
   • X-rays are only to aid in diagnosing or rule out other causes of pain (such as fractures and arthritis).
   • Your doctor may perform an ultrasound to show the middle nerve structure in your hand.

5. 

   Electromechanical measurement. In the electromechanical test, many fine needles are inserted into the muscle to measure the discharge. This test helps identify muscle damage and rule out other diseases.
   • You may be given mild pain relievers before your electromyography is performed.

6. 

   Nerve conduction test required. This test helps to detect how the nervous system is functioning and to determine if you have carpal tunnel syndrome.
   • In this test, two electrodes are placed on the hands and wrists. A slight jolt will run along the median nerve to see if the electrical impulses in the carpal tunnel have been slowed down.
   • The test results will show the extent of the nerve damage.
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