Temperature sensations w carpal tunnel
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hello! I got carpal tunnel syndrome in my right dominant hand in September 2013 after doing too much heavy box carrying in the attic. But it might have been there even before, during the summer, progressing in the background, since I'm using the pc keyboard a lot. I also got into a heavy collision with a bicycle two weeks after that when talking a walk, landing on my hands. At first I was wrong diagnosed in September twice or should I say not diagnosed at all. Saw the surgeon in December, got an operation date (after having first tried a wrist band at night from November and later in February 2014 a cortisone injection). Was operated in March 2015 and the worst part of it all was a feeling of absolutely ice coldness in the hand at night and burning heat in all of the hand during daytime. That kind of burnig heat you can feel when you´re having an inflammation somewhere, on your knee or whatever. It's very seldom You read about that particular phenomena - BUT I've had it all the time since the carpa tunnel problems arise in Sep 2013 until now. Is it the nerve inflammation I feel? The progress was VERY slow for the first 7 months, and with a couple of severe setbacks lasting for several weeks each. In November, after 8 months things were all of a sudden improving tremendously, but... then I baked some ginger breads and rub the hands onto a couple of kitchen doors to remove some stickers, so now it's almost like step 1 again (pre op)... 
It's very frustrating of course! I've noticed typing gives me trouble, so I will avoid that for some weeks now completely definitely! Finally, I've concluded what all the setbacks arised from: putting any pressure on the palm whatsoever! Is it possible for you guys to do that? Numbness, pain, tingling, extreme temperature problems now again. In my palm I still have NO feeling at all (complete sensation loss) around the scar. Do you? When I hade the surgery I was told NOT to rub my palm, I asked but it wasn't necessary they said, I wore a tape for two weeks on to the scar though. If I try to rub the scar, the numbness, pain, thunder and lightning sensation and more begins immediately, so that's impossible, and so it has been ever since the operation AND before. Thoughts?
1 like, 5 replies
jacquis59 Guest
Posted
I can't believe your surgeon instructed you not to rub your palm at all. That's a really important part of the recovery/rehab process after carpal tunnel surgery. It's odd you're having the burning pain this long after because most people have the burning pain before the surgery, caused by the carpal tunnel nerve being compressed.
I'm now a month and a half after surgery and since I've been working physio on my own I'm starting to see some improvement. I haven't gotten any help from my surgeon at all. I also bought a soft hand/wrist brace that I wear most of the time and it seems to help some. Also, if you can find them (I found mine at a pet store) get some squishable balls and bars that have texture to them. Gently manipulate them between both hands, putting pressure on the healing hand and it will help desensitise the nerves that are totally on edge right now. It hurts, but it hurts less as you do it more. I also recommend doing something called ice-dipping. A bowl of ice water and slowly dipping the hand in and out over a period of about a half an hour at a time. It all helps desensitise the tender nerves and muscles. Deep massage using your thumb from the good hand into the area of the pain your feeling will also help some. Again, it will hurt at the beginning but get better as you go along. Sadly this doesn't happen overnight and it will take time. I also went to a pet store and got a squeezable dog ball that's textured that I not only roll my hand over repeatedly during my work day but I squeeze it gently so it helps with the nerve sensitivity and it helps gain your strength back in that hand. I'm learning to be more patient as I go. Do NOT lift anything heavier than about 3-5 lbs for at least 2-3 months. You do not want to injure anything inside (tendons, muscles) while healing. Scar pads help as well. You should be able to get them at Boots or another chemist. If not, you can also get them on Amazon. Please reach out to us as you move forward. We are all here to support each other and we've all experienced the pillar pain. It's not easy but I feel it will get better since I'm seeing some improvement.
Please reach out with progress notes and if you're not seeing some improvement within a month or so, I would fire your current surgeon and see another for a second opinion. I fired my surgeon about three weeks ago and have been treating it with the things I've mentioned above that I found online. I find each day I get a little stronger and find myself in a little less pain. It takes time, but it should work.
We're always here, don't hesitate to reach out if you need more help.
Jacqui
jacquis59 Guest
Posted
Guest
Posted
First, the surgeon's words were: "I put a plaster on here now on the scar if you like (after he removed the stitches two weeks after surgery). It will fall off by itself in a couple of days. If you like you can buy an adhesive plaster then to protect the scar if you need to (something I later got informed by my physio therapist, this item was called leukoplast). The best thing for you to do however, is to get in touch with as many things and as soon as possible with the palm, use the hand! You have avoided all heavy lifting these two weeks when you've had the bandages on but have moved your fingers and did the exercises from the day after the operation I suppose (Yes I replied and the hands weren't neither swollen or with bruises at all). But avoid heavy lifting for at least 4-6 more weeks. Should I rub the palm? I asked. That won't be necessary if you make sure to grip things, hold and lift things, and to me it seems you're not having problems with the scar itself, no particular pain there in the scar and it seems to have healed just fine from what it looks. Remember though, it will take a year for all the skin layers to heal completely and for the nerve as long as you've had the nerve problem at least. Keep on doing the exercises you've been given, for as long as it takes."
In fact I was one of his last patients ever before quiting. The surgeon had 35 years of experience. Anyway, then just some weeks later, in May 2014, I went to the physio therapist clinic again (where I had been given the wrist orthosis in November 2013) and she told me to begin rubbing my palm anyway and she showed me how (all according to normal procedures I suppose). But what clearly happened then was I got back the awful pain in the median nerve, swollness at night, cold hand at night phenomena etc the very same evening and it lasted 3 weeks. Went back in early June and the procedure was the same and the setback the same again: enormous pain 6-8 mm parallell to the right of the scar in my right hand, exactly where the median nerve lies. That night I was almost even paralyzed, had trouble lifting my hand. Went back just to told her what happened. Then I progressed positively slowly until the end of November. I'd bought the Handmaster Plus balls from T Zachary US website and used the soft one ever since June. But as I said, after rubbing on stickers to remove them plus making ginger breads by pressing my palm on top of them, some severe problems now returned in late November 2014.
When I wrote burning heat in the hand, I didn't mean burning pain that much, "just" an excessive heat like the hand is boiling. The pain is instead characterized by having someone choping a chisel right into the medain nerve 6-8 mm parallell to the right of the scar in the palm of my right hand. This can happen anytime. The worst part by far is though the coldness in the hand during early mornings. The hand is best late in the evening.
Just to mention, beginning to rub my fingertips onto things and feel different kind of surfaces is something I practised by myself and all doing it by intuition since I got this, in September 2013, since in the beginning I couldn't even feel half of my long finger (not just numbness and burning pain, but partly sensation loss) - that's what characterized the start of it all, first sign actually. During surgery they noticed I had small blood vessels growing all around the median nerve causing extra pressure on the nerve in the carpal tunnel and furthermore growig into the nerve itself - so it was partly pink instead of yellow. The surgeon words after the surgery were though; we have now made the conditions for a full recovery! However, today I've noticed my tendons do hurt in the forearm, while pulling something (2.5 lb, 1 kg). Perhaps they've got swollen again? 10 months now since I got the cortico steroids injection in the wrist (just 6 weeks before the surgery) - opinions about that? To avoid excessive use of my fingers and tendons, I had made this post all by my left hand.
jacquis59 Guest
Posted
My surgeon was worthless beyond doing the surgery itself He didn't have me doing any kind of therapy at home, wouldn't send me for physio, and he basically was willing to let me sit and lose the use of my hand. I'm thankful I took things into my own hands (literally) and found the treatments I've been doing.
Not meaning to pry but trying to get an overall health picture of things that might be causing the carpal tunnel to return. Are you diabetic? I am, but luckily that doesn't seem to be the cause of my complications.
I will mention also, that I had an experience with my knee where I had the cortico steroid injections and that ended up being the worst thing I could have done. I later found out that the injections can actually create more damage and result in the need for surgery and months of therapy. My surgeon for the hands first suggest those and I told him flat out there was no way in hell I would do that after what I went through with my knee. I'm wondering if those injections are contributors to the pain and temperature issues you're going through now. Just a thought but defintely not sure. If i had known what I know now about the steroid injections I wouldn't ever have agreed to them.
Have you tried heated gloves in the mornings? Maybe slipping a small take along heat pad into a glove and wearing it for an hour or two just to try to combat the coldness that causes so much pain. Does wrapping your hand around a hot cuppa help at all with the morning coldness or is the coldness so deep inside that warmth from the outside in doesn't help? I'm concerned that the coldness is a symptom of a loss of circulation because that can cause permanent damage for you and I don't want that to happen. The goal with all of this was to get better and it seems you've been run over by a lorry instead.
Do mind the weight you try to lift. It's really important and I just today talked with someone else who has been through this that told me it will be at least 6 months before lifting more than 3-5 pounds was even advisable. I am up to about 8 pounds but it hurts like hell so I know I need to cut back to 5 and just be patient. The tendons in my forearm hurt as well. Even opening a heavy door is painful so be mindful of the activities you do. I still can't push a door open with my right hand unless I use the back of my hand and I drive left handed. Thank God I no longer have a manual transmission in my car or I'd be unable to drive.
Do you have any other medical contacts (has your regular Dr weighed in on this at all?) that you can talk to about all of the post op issues? I exhausted many resources because I was determined there had to be answers my surgeon just wasn't willing to take the time to give me.
I'll keep doing some research and see what I can find for you as well. I wish we could share personal email addresses here (if there's a way we can, let me know) and I can send you a list of books that I've found helpful information in as well.
I will do more checking this evening and send you some more info in the morning.
Guest
Posted
Otherwise, I think I'm beginning to slowly come back on track again. Incresed the amount of exercises and completed with massage of the right arm and palm plus more shoulder exercises.
I have more and more of an extraordinary symptom now. If I'm lying down on the right side all the blood/all the nerve signals or both (don't know which) stops out to my hand!! It feels a'exactly when they're manually measuring the blood pressure on you, you know, pumping the blood pressure cuff up and the hand becomes all numb. Why is that? What could it be?