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Carpal tunnel surgery 7/11/18

Posted , 5 users are following.

carol02068
carol02068

I have suffered from CT for 10 plus years in both my R and L hands.  I also have RA. After years of pain,sleepless nights, prednisone, medrol paks and cortisone injections, I decided to have surgery on my left,  non-dominate hand.  Nerve conduction tests confirmed Severe in L and  Moderate in R.

My surgery was 7/11/18. My orthopedic hand surgeon was performing a mini-open procedure. I arrived at the surgery center at 7 am. Had an IV put in. Talked with Dr and anesthesiologist. I was brought in for surgery at 8:15(surgery was 10-15 min) and was in recovery for a short time and was home by 10AM.  I was in NO PAIN after surgery and still have no pain.  My hand was in a brace(fingers free and able to move them)that I left on for 5 days. I was able to remove brace and get stitches wet on Monday 7/16 and had stitches out today,7/19.( incision was about an inch long and I had four stitches) I returned to work the day after surgery and drove myself. I own a business and it was mostly office work.  I am R-handed so that helped. The day after surgery and since then I have been able to move my fingers, open a doorknob,shop, cook, dry my hair with a hairdryer, etc.  It really is remarkable.  With such a successful surgery, I plan on getting my right hand done in a month or two.  I put this surgery off for too many years(because I was unsure of recovery time) and feel bad for anyone whose recovery is taking a long time.  I only posted this to help people know that some surgeries come off without any issues. I live in CT and if anyone wants to know who did my surgery, I will be happy to tell you.  Good Luck to everyone who is dealing with CT. 

 

2 likes, 8 replies

8 Replies

  • gabesson
    gabesson carol02068

    Posted

    Glad it all went well for you Carol. I've had both hands done (right hand twice). Left hand was great. It's been 1-1/2 years since second right hand was done. Still pins and needles, some pain and numbness. Dr. tells me I have some permanent nerve damage. Curious who was your Dr? I live in CT as well. 

    • carol02068
      carol02068 gabesson

      Posted

      Dr Thomas Moran.  Office visit in Hamden(other locations too) and surgery center in Branford.  
  • bobbers9
    bobbers9 carol02068

    Posted

    Thank you Carol, I am going through the process moving towards cts. And I am doing it reluctantly .after a bad experience having my foot operated on 6 years ago .i have pins and needles sometimes stinging in my right hand thumb and three fingers and palm since beginning of may ,some numbness but not terribly painfull yet .my dr is sure its carpal tunnel .and an injection had no affect , she sent me tot the hospital today for an x-ray to discount arthritis, and I have to see ,the surgeon 20th aug .not looking forward to it .
    • carol02068
      carol02068 bobbers9

      Posted

      Hi Bobbers9,  hopefully the X-ray will show something.  Your Dr might want to send you for Nerve conduction tests. That would confirm CT.   I put off surgery for too long and sometimes you just got to do it.  Traveling out of state right now and the carpal tunnel on my R hand flared up. So back on a Medrol pak and going to schedule surgery asap. If I had know how successful the surgery was on my L hand I would have done both at the same time.   Hope you get good results from your tests and maybe try anti inflammatory medicine, cold paks, hand braces(you can get them at any drugstores) to see if that helps first.   Good luck!!! 
    • bobbers9
      bobbers9 carol02068

      Posted

      Thanks Carol, at the moment I have quite severe pins and needles in my right thumb and to some degree in three of my fingers .NOT my small finger tho .It's most evident when i touch the tips or touch something with them ,other than that it's bearable ,not really painfull yet ,maybe that's because I'm on 4 Nurofen a day and also lyrica for a painfull foot .I will let you know how it goes .Good luck with your scheduled surgery.

  • Robin_50176
    Robin_50176 carol02068

    Posted

    Hi Carol. I'm glad your surgery and recovery was successful. Thank you so much for your detailed post as it pretty much answered all my questions. I know everyone's surgery is not the same, but I wanted to know specifically about recovery time and when to return to work. I'm scheduled to have CT surgery on my right (dominant) hand on Thursday, March 28, 2019 and return to work 5 days later. The left hand will be done a few weeks later. I am a Legal Secretary and concerned about light typing. I practiced typing with a brace on before surgery to get the feel of it. Your post has given me hope that my surgery/recovery is as successful as yours (especially the "no pain after surgery" part!).

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