Carpal Tunnel Surgery

[LEADHOPPER]

Anyonw here had carpel tunnel surgery? The doc's got me scheduled to go under the knife next monday. What was your recovery time, how long before you could cast or shoot a gun again? Not, really looking forward to this, but would be nice to be able to feel my hands again. Kinda tired of the tingling and numbness all the time. Any information would be much appreciated.

LH

[clintsfolly]

Had it on both hands and was doing what I wanted after 4 weeks but go do your PT and take it easy at first!! My hands are at about 95% know and the loss is in strength. It will be better not having the numbness. Wishing you the best and a fast comeback!! Clint

[fishhawk]

Had about the same results with mine as Clint had. One thing I did find out is it hurts a lot less if you loosen up the wrap on the arm when you get home to let the blood flow out of the hand talk about instant relief!

[clintsfolly]

The only down I have had is my hands get cold know!! So I wear glove more!!! Clint

[ErikO]

Having broken a wrist a while back I can say to NOT skip any of your PT. I recovered in 1/2 the time they projected and I found out it was due to actually doing the PT. :D

Good luck!

[Alstep]

The surgery was a piece of cake, didn't even need the pain pills they gave me. However, it took 3 months of therapy before I was able to go back to work as a machinist, I just didn't have the dexterity to put a bolt and nut together. I really had to concentrate on hard therapy to get motion and strength back in my hand. That was 10 years ago, all is well, and glad to have had it done. And I had an excellent surgeon. He said I let the situation go too long, and almost lost the use of my hand, the nerves were choked off so bad. So don't put it off, get it done! And best of luck to you.

[LEADHOPPER]

Alstep,

Thats the only thing that worries me, as I am a CNC Programmer/Machinist. I hope that I will be able to use the mouse and keyboard shortly after. As I can't miss much work. I figure that I will just have to take it easy for a while.

[Jim Flinchbaugh]

Only get one hand done at a time!
Other wise, when it comes time to wipe your ****, you'll find out who your friends really are:-o

[Alstep]

Excellent advise, Jim!

[G309]

I had both hands done at once met a good wife out of that.Had one done twice along with a cubital tunnel on the right elbow nerve.Eleven years ago.The pain is gone I don't regret that I did it .It was painful.But I waited to long to do it and have nerve damage.I can work just fine as a mechanic.But I pay for it if I split wood with a maul I have to use a wood splitter now and I cannot run a big chainsaw or weed wacker all day I am in my late 30's.
I hope you have someone with ya its hard on your own even with one hand first couple weeks.After about 4 weeks you can do a l lot but you'll be cautious more, after about 8 months you don't notice you had the surgery.Surgery now a days is a lot more advanced small cuts your out pretty quick it is better than it was 10 years ago. Good luck

If anyone has the ability to get Lasic instead of wearing glasses go for it it is miraculous.

[Alstep]

Leadhopper,
I know what you mean about missing work, but you gotta do it to save your hand. And you wait forever for disability to kick in. I was almost back to work before I got a check. I had a good therapist 3 times a week, and challenged myself to constantly exercise in between. You gotta work at it.
Regards,
Al

[Rick N Bama]

I've had the surgery for it in my right hand. I took maybe 2 pain pills, did the exercises the Doc prescribed & was back at work full blast in 6 weeks although I felt like I could have been back in 2 weeks or so.

My wife has had the surgery on both hands & she did great as well. If you have to have surgery, this one is about as simple as it comes.

Be aware that my Doc told me to change my way of doing things or it would come back again. I started using as many power tools as possible after that instead of using hand tools.

Rick

[stubshaft]

Only get one hand done at a time!
Other wise, when it comes time to wipe your ****, you'll find out who your friends really are:-o

I broke both wrists at the same time when I used to race cars. Wiping is a nightmare!

Good luck on your surgery!

[LEADHOPPER]

Well, went to see my regular doc today to be cleared for surgery. Everything looks good on that end, after I had my labs, chest x-rays and EKG, done. I guess they have to do extra tests when you have high blood pressure. Get back to work to find out that my employer changed the medical insurance yesterday and the women in the front office failed to let anyone know that they would be doing this. So it looks like I will be putting this off for a little while, so that I can get my new insurance cards and so that the orthopaedic surgery office can get it autherized with the new insurance company. Got to love it when someone else makes changes that you don't know about and they come back and bite you in the butt. Thanks everyone for the advice and good wishes. I'll keep you updated as best I can.

LH

[canyon-ghost]

I broke both wrists at the same time when I used to race cars. Wiping is a nightmare!



Yessir, nobody tells you that you've been using both hands just to take a leak or button your shirt.. broke my left and wished I hadn't.

[Blacksmith]

Leadhopper
+1 on what everyone said I don't drop things now and the pain is gone. Don't put it off to long but while you have a little time notice what you do with each hand such as wiping, brushing your teeth, how you open doors, etc. then practice doing it with the other hand or with your hands bandaged. It will cut down on the suprises later and give you a chance to figure out what works. Also ask your doctor if their are any pre operation excercises you can do to make your recovery quicker.

[pmeisel]

Lead, I had hand surgery (dupuytron's) including carpal tunnel. If you do the PT right, you should be back in action somewhere between 6 and 12 weeks, everybody heals a little different. Stay to the 22 or light stuff the first time or two out....

[Boondocker]

6 weeks a hand for me as I was a mechanic at the time. 1 at a time as to what the others say as my my don't love me that much lol. I was home on the puter the same day one handed. Plus I had the left Ulna nerve surgery. You will be glad you had it done and I am back to 90%. It improved my trigger pull. Good luck and best wishes. Boon.

[Tazman1602]

Piece of cake. Leftie has been done and righty had basil joint (thumb joint) replacement surgery also. Took a piece of tendon from my forearm to make the new joint. Works great only my right thumb is 1/2 shorter than left so for my right handed single actions I have to re-work the hammer so I can actually cock it.....

Not a bad surgery at all, take a couple of weeks to recover from----Just don't get both hands done at the same time or your wife will be taking care of when you go #2.......................

Art

[c3d4b2]

I only missed a couple of days of work. The first week was the worst due to the bandage. My palm was tender for several months , but the only time I really noticed anything was when I opened bottles. It seems the bottle lid rim contacted my hand at the point they made the incision.

[Pigslayer]

I am so glad that I have not been plagued with this malady. It sounds too painful.

[BOOM BOOM]

HI,
Had both hands done a couple of years ago. about 6 wks apart. did not cast that summer.
Had to only shoot 22 pistol for a while , but by the Oct. deer hunt I was back to the 44.:Fire::Fire:

[sleeper1428]

You might want to question your surgeon regarding how he/she plans to gain access to perform the carpal tunnel release. In other words, is an open (incision made in palm of hand) procedure planned or will the release be done using endoscopic instrumentation. A fair number of carpal tunnel procedures are now being done using endoscopic techniques which require only two or three very small incisions for insertion of the small endoscopic video camera as well as a manipulator and a knife for the actual release. Being very small, these incisions heal very quickly and require much smaller post-op dressings, thus producing much less interference with your daily activities. As I say, not all carpal tunnel surgery can be done in this manner but it certainly can't hurt to inquire. After all, you're paying for it and it's your right to know all the options.

Also, you might want to ask about the anesthetic your surgeon plans on using. In other words, will the surgery be done under general anesthesia (you are asleep) or will a regional anesthetic (local anesthetic) be used. As my working career was as an anesthesiologist, I can tell you that carpal tunnel surgery can easily be done using either a nerve block (probably an axillary block) or I.V. regional anesthesia (Bier Block) or as an alternative, a general anesthetic can be used. But as I used to tell patients, giving a patient a general anesthetic for a carpal tunnel release is sort of like using a full auto, twin mount 50 cal BAR to hunt doves - a real case of over kill!! Your wrist is being operated on so why subject your entire body to the stress of a general anesthetic when there's a really viable alternative that presents far less risks to your health and well being. Just some info to think about. Trust all goes well.

sleeper1428

[leadman]

I've had 9 hand surgeries including both carpal tunnel, 30 surgeries total. Was awake for the right hand. Doc was mad at me when he asked how it felt and I wiggled my fingers and said good.!
You will want some pants with an elastic waist so you don't have to fight the zipper. If the doc tells you to keep it elevated do it. This helps keep the blood flowing and the throbbing down. Don't do anything too long standing up with your hand down.
Take a pain pill at the first hint of pain at least for the first day, maybe into the second day.
Let any swelling go down before you start doing things. I know it is hard but it will slow the recovery if it swells up.
And good luck!

[TreeKiller]

I had both hands dune about 10 years ago. The DR. I had would only do open surgery he said that you got 48% larger opening in the wrist doing it open compared to endoscopic. No problems since then and 100% recovery. I do not have the strength in my hands that i once did. I Was running the table saw making bee boxes 5 days after surgery. Oh I had one done at a time. My wife said that she did not love me that much.:groner:

[EMC45]

Lead Hopper what Doc did you see? I am local to you and have been told I need the surgery as well. kind of reluctant to go do it though.

[sleeper1428]

Your doc's statement about getting a 48% larger opening using the open technique vs endoscopic is interesting, considering the fact that essentially ALL recent well controlled studies have shown that using the endoscopic technique results not only in less pain and a shorter time to full recovery but also statistically equivalent long term results when compared to the open technique. When comparing the two techniques at 2 week post-op, 1 month post-op, 6 month post-op and 1 year post-op, the endoscopic technique proved to be superior at each of these recovery periods. What was noted was that if the surgeon was unfamiliar with the endoscopic technique and/or was in an early learning phase of the technique, the overall operating time was slightly longer - by a matter of 2 or 3 minutes - when compared with the open technique. What was even more striking was that in several studies of long term results of both techniques, resultant hand grip was significantly higher in the endoscopic groups vs the open technique groups.

My professional career was spent as an anesthesiologist and I can tell you as a fact that many older surgeons who learned their surgery using open techniques, not just for carpal tunnel release but also for many other types of surgery, are reluctant - or in some cases, unable - to to switch over to the newer endoscopic techniques. To do so they must essentially put aside much of the knowledge gained over a lifetime of practice and starting from scratch, relearn how to view structures inside the body via a large monitor. Having spent so many years directly viewing the site of operation, this change to keeping one's eyes on a monitor rather than on the patient is often difficult, if not impossible, for certain individuals and for that reason, they will grasp at any straw that allows them to rationalize continuing to use the same techniques they've been using for so many years. I'm not saying that a surgeon who insists on doing carpal tunnel release as an open procedure is a 'bad' surgeon, only that he/she may be so 'fixed' in their way of doing things that they either don't trust the newer endoscopic methods or are unwilling to spend the time required to become proficient in their use.

I saw this same thing in my own practice when the newer methods of using electrical stimulation to locate the nerves that one desired to block (numb with local anesthetic) came into vogue. I'd been taught to elicit paresthesias (little jolts of pain similar to that felt when one hit's one's 'funny bone' in the elbow) with the exploring needle with syringe of local anesthetic attached. These paresthesias indicated that the needle was close to or touching the nerve that I wished to block (numb) but with the newer electrical stimulation techniques, a low voltage pulsed shock could give the same information with virtually no painful little shocks. It took me some time to finally accept that this was at least as good a technique as I'd been taught and that I'd better make the change before I was considered an 'old stick-in-the-mud'.

I just wanted to dispel the idea that having a carpal tunnel release via endoscopic means was going to result in a less than satisfactory result. In actual fact, the result will, in all likelihood, be equal to or better than an open surgery at all phases of recovery and especially in the long term result. Plus the endoscopic method will definitely result in less pain and a much shorter recovery period.

sleeper1428


I had both hands dune about 10 years ago. The DR. I had would only do open surgery he said that you got 48% larger opening in the wrist doing it open compared to endoscopic. No problems since then and 100% recovery. I do not have the strength in my hands that i once did. I Was running the table saw making bee boxes 5 days after surgery. Oh I had one done at a time. My wife said that she did not love me that much.:groner:

[GT27]

My question is why is this happening in such frequency,with so many people????????? I realize technology being the way it is,computers,cell phones...Do we really use our hands that much more than they did before Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs wielded the masses with our toys today?? It's really something to think about!!GT27

[pmeisel]

Some of it is probably keyboard-repetitive related. But I think a lot of it is diagnosis-related -- people had the problem and suffered in silence.

Cancer wasn't brand new a few decades back. We just called it "natural causes" or "consumption".

[LEADHOPPER]

Alright finally got my insurance all straightened out. Am suppose to go under the knife next Weds. Will let you know how everything goes. I was going to do both at the same time but SWMBO said she didn't love me that much either, so we'll see how the first one goes and go from there.

LH

[leadman]

I think that is a wise choice as you will probably be able to return to work a little earlier have one hand not worked on. The downside is you will have to do it again.

When I had my first carpal surgery done the doctor told me that the use of air tools like impact wrenches was one cause of the increase in the problem.
I started at Cummins Diesel in Grand Rapids, Mi. in 1969 and we only had a couple of shop impacts. A wrench was a months pay then. When I came back in late '73 the price on wrenches had dropped and every mechanic had one.

[Huskerguy]

My wife just had the surgery done. She works in a school, not physical work although I do my best to keep her busy around the house. :shock:

Actually, she was at the point where she could hardly use her right hand. The doc came in just before surgery and he asked if she wanted him to fix her trigger thumb and she said yes. The carpel surgery takes just a couple minutes. A small cut in the wrist area, tool goes up into the canal and they clean it out. In and out, no stitches. The thumb was much more involved but still pretty basic. She was able to use her wrist almost immediately and within a few weeks she was good to go. It was very straight forward and nothing serious at all.

[LEADHOPPER]

Well, everything went well, with the carpel tunnel surgery. Had it done at the local hospital and they did a bier block(nerve block). Took more time to get me ready for the surgery then it did to actually do it. It's so wonderful to be able to use my hand and not have that tingling felling. First day was kinda rough but, made it thru okay. Can't pick up anything that has any weight to it as of yet. But, doc said the grip strength will come in time. I figure I'll let the left hand get all healed up and then have the right hand done. I am so glad that they did not have to put me under to do this. Thanks everyone for the advice and support, can't ask for a better bunch of folks.

LH

[GT27]

I go for my first Ortho Surgeon visit for this in 2 weeks,got it bad in the left hand,had the EMG done and that was fun( needle probes and elec. shock)guess ole sawbones will have a go at me too! Glad your doing o.k.now though,gives me hope,I don't like needles and my fondness for scalpels is even less,and Drs. even less than both!I think of them as legal pain inducers!!:twisted:

[OBIII]

I hate to be the wet blanket in all of this, but allow me to tell you of my experience with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. For 6 months or longer, I would have electric shocks running down both arms, starting at the shoulder. Walking, chewing, turning something,sneezing, coughing, anything seemed to bring the shocks on. Family doctor said "Do you drink?" "Yes". "Stop drinking, it'll clear up". Went to several different doctors, same results, although sometimes the questions were "Do you Smoke?". "Yes". "Well stop Smoking, it will go away". Finally, family doctor sends me to a neurologist/neurosurgeon team for a "Professional Evaluation". Neurologist said, yep, nerve degradation down both arms, worse in the right arm (50 years old at the time). Neurosurgeon said, "What do you do?" "Telecommunications/Computer Work". Yep, Carpal tunnel, severe in the right wrist. All this time I have been asking these "Doctors", but how can a tendon in my right wrist cause electric shocks to run down BOTH arms? Answer, it can. Had the surgery scheduled, Doc used a local, opened me up. I heard him tell his Nurse, "Funny, no sign of inflamation. Oh well, "snip". Stiched me back up and sent me home. Funny thing is, still having electric shocks running down both arms. Went back to the Neurosurgeon, he had an x-ray done of my spine. The x-ray showed some abnormalities around the spinal cord, in the bone structure. This was somewhat prior to the availability of MRI's. He wanted to do a Milogram. I said what is that? He said, we put a needle into your spine, inject some contrast dye, and do another x-ray. I said no thanks, you did such a bang-up job on my symptoms, I'll pass. Several years later, finally got to a surgeon who specialized in spinal issues. He sent me for an MRI (in the morning). I was scheduled to meet with him a week later to go over the MRI. His office called me that afternoon, and said he wanted to see me tomorrow. The next day, he said that he had scheduled me for surgery in 2 weeks. 2 weeks later, C2-C6 in my neck were gone and replaced with titanium rods and pins, with crushed bone forming a new spinal section.
My point in all of this? Be aware of your symptoms, and do not hesitate to seek a second opinion. Before the neck surgery, I could not feel a dime with my fingertips. Nerve damage had lasted longer than 1 year, so the numbness is never going to go away. However, the day after the surgery I asked my wife if she had a dime, and asked her to drop it on the table. I was able to pick it up with no problem.
Just make sure, as best as you can, that you are being treated for the right problem.

[gandydancer]

Had the left wrist done in 2010 looks like he used a chain saw for the cuts. still not right. months later the quack left the USA for the land of the towel heads. to many lawyers after his hide. still have not had the right one done.

[Superfly]

i had my right hand done.

It was a failure lots of scaring and it still hurts like a bitch, My hand looked like a friggin chicken breast id must have beeen done by a blind chainsaw artist

[rexherring]

My wife had her right hand done and she recovered within three weeks. I had an EMG test done and I guess I need it on both of mine too. Don't want both done at the same time though and most of the docs here won't do both. Not looking forward to that and shooting my .45 Blackhawk for awhile. Maybe some .30 Cowboy loads will work but not until the PT and recovery is done. Anyone getting any surgery, do the prescribed PT and it goes faster. I had to after a neck surgery and did PT for a month. Helped greatly.

[Boondocker]

Mine turned out great and I second the PT as that is the key to fast recovery. I liked the part where they emerged my hands in hot wax and wrapped it in a towel, it felt so good on the ache. Then they massaged it to get the adhesion's loosened up.

[sleeper1428]

Well, everything went well, with the carpel tunnel surgery. Had it done at the local hospital and they did a bier block(nerve block). Took more time to get me ready for the surgery then it did to actually do it. It's so wonderful to be able to use my hand and not have that tingling felling. First day was kinda rough but, made it thru okay. Can't pick up anything that has any weight to it as of yet. But, doc said the grip strength will come in time. I figure I'll let the left hand get all healed up and then have the right hand done. I am so glad that they did not have to put me under to do this. Thanks everyone for the advice and support, can't ask for a better bunch of folks.

LH

Glad all went well with your surgery. The Bier Block was an excellent choice for this type of surgery and in fact was my personal favorite for carpal tunnel release throughout my career in anesthesiology. It might interest you that the Bier Block - actually it's what is called an IV (intravenous) Regional Anesthetic - was introduced by Karl August Bier in 1908 so it has been around for over 100 years and is still an excellent choice for reasonably short duration operations on both upper and lower extremities.

Again, glad that all went well and that you're on the mend.

sleeper1428

[sleeper1428]

In reading through this thread, I noted that several individuals ended up with poor to very poor results. Just a note of caution - carpal tunnel release is an operation done by surgeons in many different specialties. In my years of practice as an anesthesiologist I saw General Surgeons, Orthopedic Surgeons, Plastic Surgeons and Neurosurgeons do this procedure with widely varying degrees of expertise. And after observing this wide variation in skill level, my suggestion would be to go with either an Orthopedic Surgeon who limits his/her practice to hand surgery (yes, this is a sub-specialty that usually requires an additional 1 or 2 years of fellowship training after the completion of the regular 3 to 5 year Orthopedic Residency training period) or to a Plastic Surgeon who also has had sub-specialty training in hand surgery following completion of his/her Plastic Surgery residency, often in the same program(s) where the Orthopedic sub-specialty training is done.

There's an old adage regarding surgeons that still holds true: "There are never too many surgeons, only too many people doing surgery." The average consumer of medical care is pretty much unaware of the fact that while it's possible to teach many individuals how to do surgery to a level of mediocre competence, there are only a very limited few who are truly gifted surgeons, who seem to know intuitively how to do each procedure and when not to do a given procedure - a skill that many surgeons lack. Which brings up another old adage of surgery: "It takes two years to learn how to get into a belly but twenty years to learn when to stay out." Which of course refers to the fact that many younger surgeons are eager to operate and with minimal experience behind them, have a difficult time when it comes to making the decision to 'wait and watch', use non invasive procecures and not try to solve every problem with a knife.

Anyway, I'm sorry to hear that many of the participants in this forum have had such bad results from a surgical procedure that, in good hands, should have an outstanding outcome. Unfortunately, you ended up with one of the surgeons I mentioned above, the ones who were only capable of being trained to a mediocre level and who, once out of their residency, then assume they are capable of doing far more than their actual skills dictate.

sleeper1428

[LEADHOPPER]

Had a post-op appointment yesterday afternoon to have my stitches removed. Doctors said everything looks good. Nurse said that they were the easiest stitches that she has every taken out. I guess moving them around everyday so they wouldn't get stuck worked out good. go back in 3 weeks for another check up, hopefully hand will be all healed up by then.

LH