5 Main Causes of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Although all organs of our body perform crucial functions, physical activities are potentially related to the hands, wrists, feet, and legs. Any hindrance in the movement of these organs is sufficient to seize the partial or overall movement of our body. Hence, the health of these organs is vital for enjoying an active life. 

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a medical state that interferes with hand health and movement. It’s terrible to assume that one or both hands are suffering from the issue and that we are confined to doing our routine work. Let us briefly overview the causes of carpal tunnel syndrome in detail.

What Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

The carpal tunnel is a thin passage through which the median nerve and tendons pass. These nerves and tendons are responsible for finger movement. Median Nerve compression is another name for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment Lahore. The terms “median” and “compression” explain the condition. “Median” indicates the central, and “compression” means pressure. Hence, pressure on the middle nerve in the carpal tunnel of the wrist is called carpal tunnel syndrome.

In this condition, you feel numbness, tingling, burning, pain, or weakness in your fingers. Your thumb, index finger, and middle fingers, as well as possibly the thumb side of your ring finger, can show intense symptoms. All these symptoms restrict your hand from holding things and to perform other activities efficiently.

How can you get Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

Overall, general health depends upon the individual healthy organs. Hand and wrists are worthy organs that play a pivotal role in physical activity. In order to understand how we can suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome, it’s crucial to know its leading causes. Here are five main causes that can elaborate on the issue.

Life Style 

Our lifestyle is a detrimental factor for any medical condition. It constitutes our diet, professional life, personal preferences and habits. Moreover, if we have experienced any trauma leading to any change in our routine, it can also be added to this domain. Here are some key features of our lifestyle that can be a reason for carpal tunnel syndrome.

  1. Profession

Your profession highly affects the chances of getting CTS or carpal tunnel syndrome. Jobs or careers that require repetitive hand movements, such as typing, assembly line work, or playing musical instruments, increase the risk of CTS. Moreover, it can lead to swelling and irritation of the tendons in the carpal tunnel, which pressurizes the median nerve.

In addition, careers involving consistent use of different tools like hammers and drill machines are risky. Furthermore,  any other task in which prolonged unusual hand movement is required is high on the list of its causes.

  1. Physical activities and Habits

Physical activities and other habits determine whether your lifestyle is healthy or not. Sometimes, small mistakes can transform your healthy activity into a risky one. Here is an explanation in addition to the effects of your habits

  • Heavy Exercise: 

Exercise is a healthy activity, but if it involves persistent strain on the median nerve, it can quickly induce CTS.

  • Poor Posture

Improper posture while performing different tasks, explicitly using a computer, mobile, or tab, can cause stress on the wrist. Moreover, we must be careful concerning hand posture when we use various tools like hammers or screws.

  1. Medical Conditions

Various medical conditions add to the probability of CTS. Some significant diseases concerning carpal tunnel syndrome surgery are;

  • Obesity

Possessing excess body weight indicates increased pressure on all the joints of the body. This pressure transmits to the median nerve, leading to CTS.

  • Inflammatory Conditions

Inflammatory diseases cause inflammation of tissues and tendons. Hence, they disrupt the health of the median nerve and surrounding tendons, resulting in a high risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.

  • Fluid Retention

All medical conditions that cause fluid accumulation in the body, such as kidney failure, can lead to building pressure on the tendons and ligaments of the wrist and hand. Some natural phenomena, like pregnancy or menopause, may result in fluid retention due to hormonal changes during these conditions. Hence, these diseases and conditions are included in the leading causes of carpal tunnel syndrome.

  • Hypertension

High blood pressure leads to the changes in the blood flow. Hence, patients suffering from hypertension are at high risk of CTS due to the stress produced by blood on the wrist area.

  • Tumors or Growths

Any tumour or growth in the carpal tunnel causes carpal tunnel syndrome. It is because tumours or growths build pressure in the wrist area, resulting in the medical condition.

  • Hypothyroidism

Decreased thyroid function may result in myxedema, a disorder in which the tissues, particularly the carpal tunnel, accumulate mucopolysaccharides, putting more pressure on the median nerve. Consequently, this leads to the development of CTS.

  • Gout

It is a medical condition in which crystals of uric acid accumulate in joints, causing swelling and pain. Therefore, patients suffering from gout are at high risk of getting CTS.

  1. Wrist Injuries

People with any kind of wrist injury, such as fractures, dislocations, or other injuries, can often have carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). It is due to damage to bones or wrist tissues that can affect the median nerve, too. Moreover, people with a history of wrist injuries, although recovered, have more chances to get CTS.

  1. Anatomy

Every individual has a unique body structure, even at the micro level. The same is true for the anatomy of wrist muscles, bones, and tissues. Naturally, the smaller size of the carpal tunnel or the presence of thicker carpal ligaments can be a prominent reason for CTS.

Wrapping Up

To sum up, knowing the causes of any medical condition can be helpful in terms of its prevention, diagnosis and treatment. It becomes more crucial if these conditions can disrupt our physical movements. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a common condition of the hand in which the median nerve passing through the carpal tunnel gets suppressed. The leading causes of CTS include our life routines, such as professional business, Exercise, and other habits. Furthermore, numerous medical issues like obesity, hypertension, gout and fluid retention increase the risk of CTS. Wrist injuries also contribute to the causes of carpal tunnel syndrome. It may be time to see an orthopedic surgeon if you’re dealing with intense discomfort like this.

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