I had a patient return for care today after a few year hiatus. She reported that a few months ago, she had carpal tunnel surgery because she had unrelenting numbness in her pinky and ring finger. The surgery didn't help and she showed up at my office desperate for help.
Allow me to explain the carpal tunnel (apparently, the surgeon needs to read this, too):
In carpal tunnel surgery, the Transverse Carpal ligament is cut to make more room for the Median nerve to travel through. (You can see both the ligament and the nerve in the picture.) This ligament can get irritated and thickened from microtrauma (typing on a keyboard is one of the main mechanisms for injury), resulting in irritation and/or compression of the Median nerve. This results in the middle finger getting "pins and needles" or going numb. The finger can also get weak. Cutting the ligament to relieve the pressure has been the medical solution for this for quite some time. If you trace the Median nerve from the wrist to the fingers in the picture, you will see that it travels mainly to the middle finger (with a small piece branching towards the inner ring finger and the outer index finger so, sometimes, those with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome will experience numbness here, too). The Ulnar nerve goes to the pinky and ring finger.
My patient was actually experiencing an ulnar nerve entrapment. This was confirmed during the exam that I did on the patient.
To say this makes me angry is an understatement. This happens all the time! And I cannot believe that these surgeons who are going in and operating have no idea where the nerves go to or what the symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome are. If that is the case, they don't deserve to have a license! This leads me to believe that all they are after is... MONEY!
Surgery is RISKY! And according to this article, 1 in 20 young, healthy adults die within a year of being anesthetized!
I generally refrain from speaking negatively about the medical profession, but this has got to stop. This patient has now gone through unnecessary surgery, is on disability, and is still seeking relief. I'm just glad she called and she is now back on the path of health and regaining her life. If you know someone who is having Carpal Tunnel symptoms, PLEASE share this post. And then have them call my office to schedule an appointment at 908.300.8800
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