Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Avoiding Surgery
Dr. Sarah Leahy Granite
I meet a lot of new people – at community events, in the grocery store, while waiting in line for coffee. I meet so many people that sometimes it’s hard to keep them all straight. The ones I never forget, however, are the ones I know I could have helped had I met them sooner.
The recipients of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome surgery are among these people. It is estimated that 10% of the US population will have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) at some point during their lives, with women three times more likely than men to experience CTS symptoms. With many known causes (including swelling due to obesity or during pregnancy), CTS is most commonly associated with repetitive motion, such as typing at a computer, writing or sewing. Over time these motions build scar tissue in the carpal tunnel, a space inside the wrist that houses many important structures, including the nerves that control movement and feeling in the hand. As scar tissue builds, the space narrows and the median nerve becomes compressed, causing numbness, tingling and weakness into the thumb side of the hand.
One of the trickiest parts of being a chiropractor, and dealing mainly with the nervous system, is knowing that where pain is felt is usually not where the problem originates. Pain in the wrist could mean a problem in the forearm, upper arm, or even the neck. It is my job to find out where the problem truly started, and then eliminate that problem, and therefore the symptoms. Based on my clinical experience, many patients who believe they have (and may have been diagnosed with) Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, do not actually have it. Since the practitioner who diagnosed that patient may not have known to examine these other possible problem areas, unnecessary surgery may have been performed.
So, if you truly have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, what are your options for treatment? Traditional treatment involves anti-inflammatory medication, and, when that fails, surgery. Though carpal tunnel release surgery is currently one of the most commonly performed surgeries in the United States, it is not without risks. And what if you don’t want to burden your body with medication or surgery? A technique called Graston® may be just what you’re looking for.
Graston Technique® is a form of conservative treatment that uses soft tissue mobilization to treat scar tissue and restrictions that affect normal function. Graston® is practiced by chiropractors, physical therapists, and some medical doctors, and has become standard protocol in hospitals and universities across the country. The technique is also being used by the NBA, NHL, NFL, MBL, and on Olympic athletes including swimmer Michael Phelps. Graston Technique® has an 86% success rate in elimination of Carpal Tunnel symptoms, and can also help conditions including post-surgical loss of motion, plantar fasciitis, and tendonitis.
Last week I met a woman at a road race who told me about the surgeries she’d had on both knees, leaving her unable to bend them past 90 degrees in over 20 years. When I told her I could help, she said that no one had ever said that to her before. I found myself wishing I had met her when she was a teenager, before the surgery and scar tissue had left her feeling like she would never be the same. It made me sad to know that there are lots of people out there just like her – people who may have been done an injustice by practitioners who were unaware of the options for conservative treatment. Luckily, now that you’ve read this article, you are no longer one of them.
