Carpal tunnel syndrome is fairly common and caused by a pressure on a nerve in your wrist. It causes pain and numbness in your hand and fingers, which often feels worse during the night.
It is caused by repetitive movements and overuse of the wrist, and may be more prevalent in pregnant people and people who are overweight.
It can get better with the use of non-invasive treatments such using splints to support the wrist and relieve pressure as well as taking over the counter pain relief such as paracetamol and ibuprofen. However, any relief from your symptoms may be temporary.
Steroid injections can help to reduce the inflammation and ease your symptoms.
Sometimes this can be a longer term solution but it is also possible for the symptoms to return.
Overall, to get you back to enjoying your day to day life without experiencing the symptoms of carpal tunnel, then surgery may be recommended.
Carpal tunnel decompression surgery is usually performed with local anaesthetic as a day case in hospital.
A small incision is made in your hand and the nerve is freed from the tunnel in your wrist to release the pressure.
