The UK’s Leading Orthopaedic Shockwave Clinic
Tel: 020 8549 6666
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Shockwave Treatment
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) develops slowly. Initially, you’re most likely to notice it at night or when awaking first thing in the morning. You may experience a feeling similar to ‘pins-and-needles’ you get when your hand becomes numb and ‘falls asleep’.
As CTS progresses, many sufferers notice weakness in their thumb and first two fingers, making it difficult to make a fist or grip items. You may find yourself accidently dropping things or have unusual trouble holding a utensil or buttoning a shirt. You may also experience shooting pains in your wrist and arm.
Women are three times more likely than men to get Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, especially during pregnancy.
How You May Get CTS
The pain in your carpal tunnel is due to excess pressure in your wrist and on the median nerve. Inflammation can cause swelling. The most common cause of this inflammation is an underlying medical condition that causes swelling in the wrist, and sometimes obstructed blood flow. Chronic inflammation can lead to scar tissue and a narrowing of the carpal tunnel, this is where the median nerve becomes compressed.
How Shockwave Helps Recovery from CTS
Extracorporeal means ‘occurring outside the body’ so Carpel Tunnel Syndrome Shockwave Treatment allows you to have treatment without invasive treatment, surgery or anaesthetics.
What Happens During Shockwave Therapy for CTS?
We will isolate the area that needs to be treated, then using our focussed shockwave equipment we will start sending gentle impulses into the carpal tunnel. These waves are audible, low-energy sound waves, which work by increasing blood flow to the injured area and speeding up your body’s healing process.
The process is virtually pain-free and crucially, tendons that have become thickened due to scar tissue are thinned and made more malleable.
While Shockwave Treatment to painful parts of the body is a relatively new approach to CTS treatment, we have had significant success with similar treatments involving tissue rejuvenation, increasing blood flow and repairing damage. Generally, two or three appointments will lead to an improvement in the condition and a speedy recovery.
We now use castor oil, rather than gel or petroleum jelly as the medium between the shockwave equipment and the patient for many of our shockwave procedures. We have found that the little pain that our patients feel is reduced when we use castor oil, and we believe that the shockwaves reach the areas needing treatment more effectively. You can find out more about this, if you wish, by reading our news item Castor Oil versus Gel in Shockwave Therapy.
To find out more about how we can help you, or to book a free consultation or an appointment, contact us now, or better still call us right away to discuss your problem Tel: 020 8549 6666
References
“ESWT can be as useful as CS injection for relieving symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Furthermore, in contrast to CS injection, it has the merit of being non-invasive.”– American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation – April 2013 – Volume 92 – Issue 4