Carpal is a medical term that refers to the wrist, syndrome is a group of signs and symptoms that together are characteristic or indicative of a specific disease or disorder.
Carpal tunnel syndrome or CTS is a common condition in which a nerve is squeezed where it passes through the wrist. This nerve called the Median Nerve, controls muscles that move your thumb; it also carries information back to the brain about sensations in your thumb and fingers.

The main symptoms of CTS are tingling, numbness and pain in one or both hands.

These symptoms most often occur in the thumb, the index finger, the middle finger and half of the ring finger. However, the tingling and pain can sometimes extend outside this area.

The symptoms also tend to develop gradually, and usually start off being worse at night or early in the morning.

Any repetitive actions of the hand or wrist can aggravate the symptoms, as can keeping your arm or hand in the same position for a prolonged time.

What can cause CTS

In a lot of cases there isn’t an obvious cause, however , possible causes can include:

•  any form of arthritis affecting the wrist
•  hormonal changes (as in pregnancy)
•  an underactive Thyroid gland
•  diabetes

An actual case study of a woman in her 30’s showed the likely cause of CTS in her right hand to be the constant carrying of heavy bags for eg shopping.

In this case, surgery was required which was totally successful leaving a very faint scar (see picture at right).

As can be seen the surgical scar blends well with the normal lines in the palm of the hand.

There is also a possibility of developing CTS if your job places heavy demands on your wrist or from prolonged use of vibrating tools.

What are the treatments For CTS

The treatment is usually dictated by how severe or limiting the subjective factors are upon the median nerve.
It is possible that CTS will settle with conservative treatment, yet some may require surgery where the former approach is unsuccessful.

N.B. This article is purely informational and not designed as a self diagnostic tool. If you’re experiencing weakness of the hand muscles, pins and needles or numbness in the hand you should seek advice from a professional

The post Carpal Tunnel Syndrome appeared first on Lisa Ives Osteopathy.

We can all at some stage pick up a ‘dreaded’ injury – if your car wasn’t running smoothly you would take it to a garage to be checked. So why not treat yourself as you would your car?

There are an enormous array of injuries seen in clinic on a daily basis, of which, the timescale that a person reports having less than 100% functional use is equally vast – from a few days to many years.

Osteopaths treat more than you think – most associate our profession with ‘backs/necks’ or ‘just bones’. Perhaps the word ‘Osteo-‘ meaning bone, doesn’t help us out here? Osteopathy is a system of diagnosis and treatment for a wide range of medical conditions. It works with the structure and function of the body, and is based on the principle that the well-being of an individual depends on the skeleton, muscles, ligaments and connective tissues and nervous system functioning smoothly together.

But when is the right time to seek help?

Good question, there are a lot of self-help mechanisms out there with the internet sometimes not being particularly helpful. Generally speaking, the longer you leave an injury the longer it can take to rehabilitate.
Seeking advice from a professional can enable diagnosis/treatment and the right information to get back to your normal day to day activities and/or sport quicker.

Any practitioner should be working mutually and empathetically with you to provide solutions according to each person’s individual presentation.

We all think we’re invincible but sometimes we may need help on the road to recovery. Supports/strapping and medication can all provide valuable aids in rehabilitation of injuries, but rarely can they provide sole resolution in the absence of diagnosis.

The post Injury Management appeared first on Lisa Ives Osteopathy.

Or to give it the medical terminology ‘Lateral Epicondylitis’. This is a common condition that effects the outside of your elbow. It results from inflammation and micro tearing of the fibres in the tendons that extend your forearm.

As mentioned you don’t have to be a sportsperson to incur this condition, it can arise from repetitive forceful turning (supination/pronation) of the forearm extensor muscles.

For example:

• Non-Sport: Jobs such as using a screwdriver on a daily basis, gardeners for excess pruning, plasterers from high demand turning the wrist/forearm and hand.
• Sport: Most racquet sports, polo, hockey (golf affects the medial side of the elbow)

But that’s not the whole story. Why does it happen?

There can be various predisposing factors as to why this happens. It can be as a direct result of taking up a new activity or sport that your forearms have not been used to. Also there could be weakness in the shoulder or wrist muscles which cannot support the demands on the smaller muscles of the elbow. There could also be an imbalance between the flexors and the extensor muscles in the forearm.

If it’s a racquet sport induced injury, then it may be worth getting your technique checked out and address if the racquet is strung too tightly – these can all be easily rectifiable factors which may be of comfort to know that you won’t have to give up your sport indefinitely.

Self Help: What can you do to help yourself prior to seeking treatment?

Temporary rest away from the activities that provoke symptoms, ice, gentle stretching

“I’ve tried that and I’ve tried anti-inflammatories but it’s not going away……..”

What can Osteopaths do to help?

• Assess and diagnose if you have Lateral Epicondylitis
• Advise you on how to deal with it according to your circumstance
• Treatment incorporating a range of techniques and modalities designed to manage and rehabilitate you as an individual
• Advice on addressing any imbalance found on examination
• Strengthening exercises given where required

The post You don’t have to play tennis to get “Tennis Elbow” appeared first on Lisa Ives Osteopathy.