Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Blue Collar Pain
Monday, November 24th, 2008Over the past few days, I’ve been learning more and more about carpal tunnel syndrome.
Apparently, it’s a little more controversial than I had realized.
Illustration of the carpal tunnel. Provided by: Leslie Laurien, M.S.M.I., from Medem: Medical Library
The carpal tunnel is a tiny stiff passageway between ligaments and bones that runs from the underside of the wrist to the hand. Through it runs the median nerve. The median nerve is a large nerve that runs all the way down the arm to the hand.
In the hand, it communicates with the thumb and the first three fingers. When the ligaments or tendons that pass through this little corridor become irritated or injured in some way, they may become swollen. Therefore they take up more space in the carpel tunnel, which leaves less room for the median nerve. And then you have carpal tunnel syndrome.
Carpal tunnel syndrome, I learned, has quite a few symptoms, not only pain. Tingling. Numbness. Inability to grip strongly.
This is often exacerbated by sleep, as folks can sleep with their wrists bent in a variety of directions (seems even in sleep we don’t know what to do with our hands). In some instances, sufferers of carpal tunnel syndrome wake up repeatedly in the night due to pain or extreme discomfort. And then of course the misery level increases due to being low on sleep!
The reason why I mention ‘controversy’ is that I had always thought it was a given that prolonged activities such as typing or computer use would contribute to or cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Now that I’m reading up on it, I’m surprised to see that the jury is still out on this as a cause.
Certain other work-related activities are acknowledged to be the culprit–assembly line work, cleaning, manufacturing, sewing, meat packing, fish processing, forestry work (can you imagine what repetitive chainsaw use might due to those tendons?). This is certainly a far cry from the image most of us may have of carpal tunnel sufferers, that of the person sitting at the computer keyboard for hours on end. Women are much more likely to suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome: it’s thought because the carpal tunnel is smaller in women than in men.
So a woman who works a blue-collar job is more likely to suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome. And workers with carpal tunnel syndrome have to deal with losses in time and pay. To be brutally honest–and no, it’s not fair–a blue-collar woman is probably least likely to be able to afford such losses.
On a brighter note, testing for carpal tunnel syndrome is more precise than it was in the 1990s, when CPT came onto the scene in a big way. In 2002, OSHA started doing research and putting together a wide-ranging plan to put the lean on factories regarding ergonomic guidelines, education, and improvements in worker comfort. Physical therapy and sports medicine companies have developed products to help prevent and aid in treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome. These products are easier to find, research, and get insurance reimbursement for then they were a decade ago.
Smart Glove PM by Imak
Braces or splints are some of the most suggested therapies, to help immobilize the wrist. These are particularly recommended at night, to help prevent unintentional wrist motion or compression. When the wrist is in a neutral, unbent position, that helps to keep the carpal tunnel at its widest, and minimize the squeezing of the median nerve.
As with any carpal tunnel therapy treatment, you should always check with your physician prior to use.
For these and other carpal tunnel syndrome-related products, please visit PainReliever.com.
Marguerite
Who Do I Think I Am, Anyway?
Tuesday, November 18th, 2008Hi, I’m Marguerite.
The Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale, used in pediatric pain management.
I’m the new blogger for HealthBeat–so I think I’d better introduce myself and explain to you why I believe I’m qualified to talk to you about pain and things that go creak in the night.
As it says in my profile, I have two young children. Very active, very curious, inclined to scrapes, bumps, knocks, spills, falls–all the normal stuff of youth.
At the other end of the relative spectrum, both my parents are in their mid-70s. My mother has Type 2 Diabetes, as well as a heck of a time with sciatica and a relationship with her chiropractor for over 25 years. She’s a tough old lady–beating cancer in her spare time–and would really rather take a DIY approach to her health than go to the doctor.
When I was in my early teens, her passion was yardwork, and she constantly got herself into tissue damage predicaments. She was always cutting herself or crushing various things with sharp implements. I still remember the time she almost sliced off all the skin over one knuckle with a long-handled tree-branch pruner. Anyone else would’ve gotten stitches, but she cleaned herself up in the bathroom sink, painted everything with Merthiolate (does anyone reading this remember Merthiolate?) applied A&D ointment, and wrapped it up with gauze and surgical tape. That’s pretty much been her approach to everything involving injuries that break the skin.
IMAK Hand Exerciser Stress Ball, For Hand Strength & Physical Therapy
In 1991, when I was in college, my dad had a small stroke. He recovered well enough to return to his career as a piano instructor at one of the local universities, and even overcame the lingering disabilities to give recitals. But this certainly introduced us to the world of physical therapy, exercises, and rehab equipment.
My husband played football before I met him, and has all kinds of lingering issues. His knees are, shall we say, not optimal. This past year he had to have multiple physical therapy sessions due to old rotator cuff insult. This, believe it or not, was not from football, but from his stint as an armored truck guard: He once caught an 800-lb bag of coin in his left hand (rather than have it hit the bank’s marble floor, bust open, and spill lord knows how much money). And that tore Lord knows what.
Both my husband and I are involved in an organization known as the Society for Creative Anachronism. It’s a not-for-profit organization that researches the Middle Ages and then tries to recreate them. We’re both invested in heavy weapons combat. A kind of martial arts, if you like. Except this martial art involves putting on armor and trying to beat the bewhillikers out of each other. We have rules, and safety experts, and medical people involved–our injury record is better, certainly than that of high school football.
But we who are involved in this sport do sustain a lot of injuries–Sprains. Strains. Bruises. Dislocations. Rotator cuff overuse. The odd broken bone here and there. We love our cold therapy and our heat therapy, and we really, really love our chiropractors.
So what I’m going to be doing is posting about adventures in injury, I guess you could call it. From where I’m sitting, I have a viewpoint of several segments of the population. You experienced folks who are determined not to let your golden years sit on you like lead. You parents who have kids bouncing all over the neighborhood, in addition to well-meaning spouses who try to overdo with painful consequences. Athletes and friends of athletes who get hurt and play hurt.
My hope is to inform you, amuse you, ask you questions, give you answers, and shed some light on helpful products that’ll help you wake up the next day with a little less pain. Goodness knows a little less pain is something we could all use.
Best wishes,
Marguerite
Brand New Look!
Thursday, November 13th, 2008After months of hard work, our site for pain reliever products, painreliever.com, has a new look. No, don’t worry! It’s even easier to navigate than before! A white background with easy-on-the-eyes blue text make the site friendly to those folks doing a little late-night (or early-morning) shopping. We still have great products from Sombar, Mueller Sports Medicine, Biofreeze, Zonk Designs, and many others–and we’re always adding new products so we can better serve you folks.
Snoozer Full Body Pillow
You can also expect the blog to take a new direction! Of course we’ll still talk about the products we have available–but we’re going to start taking a look at some of the conditions you may be concerned about. We hope to demystify some of the terms, perhaps answer questions, and make your search for pain-free living a little easier!