Diagnosing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Diagnosing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

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How is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome diagnosed?
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome can usually be diagnosed by your doctor who will perform an examination of the hand, wrist and fingers and ask a range of questions about any symptoms you may have experienced. There is no foolproof method of establishing whether a patient’s symptoms are wholly or in part due to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, but an experienced doctor will be able to recognise the condition from the pattern of the patient’s signs and symptoms. These will include:

Patient’s history

Most doctors agree that the best guide to whether or not a patient is suffering from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is listening to their description of the symptoms. One of the most characteristic features of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is the being woken in the night be tingling or pain within the hand and wrist. However this situation does not occur in every case, so a range of questionnaires have been produced to elicit answers from patients about the how the symptoms affect them personally.

While pregnancy and other issues within the body can bring on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, in a lot of cases the condition can be brought on by frequent or prolonged use of vibrating equipment. In these cases your doctor will be keen to hear about your job, and the actions you regularly perform as a part of your role.

Physical Examination with Provocative Tests

A physical examination may involve the doctor tapping your wrist to see if you feel tingling or numbness in the fingers. Provocative tests mean physical manoeuvres that can be carried out in a clinic with little need for expensive equipment. The aim is to temporarily increase the pressure within the carpal tunnel with a view to provoking symptoms. The best known of these is Phalen’s Test, which includes flexing your wrist or holding it above your head to see if it induces the pain or numbness associated with the condition.

Blood Tests

A blood test might be used to ascertain whether there are underlying conditions related to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or even an underactive thyroid gland.

Nerve conduction study

A nerve conduction study will involve placing electrodes on your hands, wrists and elbows then passing a small electrical current through the electrodes to measure how fast signals are transmitted through your nerves. This can indicate how much damage has been sustained by the nerve and as a result how serious the condition has become.

Imaging study

An ultra-sound or CT scan can help doctors see an image of inside the wrist to establish whether the signs of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome are present.

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