DarkFury

Well... I finally let the doctor cut on me.


Went in for surgery Thursday morning and finally got some decent feeling in my fingers today (2 days later)

Having one hand to work with really sucks. I can't get my bandaged left hand wet for the next 2 weeks (when I go in for a follow up and have the stitches removed...) and it definitely makes "everyday tasks" an adventure.


Honestly, I don't see how people who do both hands at the same time do it... just the thought of not being able to wipe your backside makes me cringe...

Oh well... just thought I'd share (if anyone wondered where I had been the last few days...)

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johnnymk

Too much GotApexing?

Daedalus

Hope you get 'em both back soon. Surgery sucks but you'll probably be very glad you did it in not time. It's amazing how you take everyday things for granted until you can't do them anymore. I remember when I shattered my femur and couldn't bend my knee for a couple months. Forget wiping your backside...try maneuvering onto a toilet while keeping one leg completely straight!

chrissy

Oh DF! Hugs to you!

uncledaddy

Hope you get well soon, buddy.

Probably took awhile to type that post, huh?

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DarkFury

No... too little space in my wrist for my nerves to communicate with my fingers.

Actually, once the local anesthesia wore off, I can type just fine. My fingers are free... just the palm of my hand and wrist are bandaged.

Only thing is... my 2 middle fingers are still somewhat numb at the tips, so I'll have to see if that ever goes away.

mcs328

How did you know you needed to get surgery?

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chrissy

Good question mcs! I know I have CT, but when do I say enough is enough?

DarkFury

There would be times when my left hand would go completely numb... my 2 middle fingers would feel like needles and pins were sticking into them.

Pretty much the pain will tell you when you need to get it taken care of. My left hand had gotten to the point where I just was at my limit of constantly nagging me. I have a little bit more tolerance for my right hand... so I'll wait and see on that one.

mcs328

well oh crap that's me too then. I thought I had bad blood circulation or just my hand fell asleep a little. For me it's my thumbs.

uncledaddy

I have those very symptoms in my feet. Same?

Don't think I'm having anything cut down there.

DarkFury

Honestly, go see your doctor about that...

Don't risk permanent damage trying to "wait it out".

chrissy

Did they mention anything about the feeling in your fingers? If it was a normal thing and would come back?

Cubsfan

Did you ever try to get a cortisone shot? I've heard that works for some people, but a lot of them end up still needing surgery anyway.

DarkFury

When I go to the doctor on the 14th of this month, I'll have to ask him about that.

I can tell that it has gotten better. My fingers don't feel quite as numb today (so maybe the nerves will repair themselves over time I hope...) I can still feel just a little numbness but it isn't anywhere near as bad as it was a month ago.

I even played a little Unreal Tournament 3 last night (since I can rest my wrist on the desk and just use my left hand fingers to control the keyboard movements. I did ok... hopefully it will get much better as it heals.

Today I am back at work, and I can at least type normally, which is a plus. My palm still hurts a bit, but not so much to keep me from typing. I can't lift anything heavier than 3 to 5 pounds in my left hand though (and opening bottles/cans with twist tops is a problem...)


Prior to having surgery, I had an EMG test performed to tell the severity of my problem. Based on this test, I had moderate to severe carpal tunnel. On top of that, when I told the doctor that I had been suffering from symptoms for the better part of the past 10 years he recommended the surgery versus going with a cortisone shot or other non surgical procedures.

Pretty much, if your CTS is light, the cortisone might work to reduce some of the swelling in the wrist so that you can open up some space for the nerves not to get bound and cause pain. In my case, he noticed that my transverse ligament was pretty tight and that the passageway for the nerve was very small, thus causing my pain.

Another test that they do is for you to hold your hands together, palms facing outward (so that the back of your hands are touching) with your wrists touching each other. If your hands start tingling within 30 seconds to a minute, then that is also a good indicator of the severity of the nerve pinch in your wrist.

The surgery is an "end all" solution to the problem as it forcibly makes space in the wrist for the nerve. Pretty much if you are willing to deal with the inconvenience and expense of it, then it is the preferred method of treatment (from what I've been told and have read...). That's why I went that route. I was just tired of foolin' around with my ganked up wrist/hand.

Cubsfan

This is the one where they cut the little band connecting the bones in the carpal tunnel, right? Was it pretty easy? I always got the impression that it wasn't a bad surgery (as surgeries go).

I had to have that stupid test done where they stick needles into your arms and make you flex. That sucked, but I just had tendinitis which hadn't progressed to pressing on the nerve yet (except at night when I must have been folding my hand over, wrist braces fixed that).

So what caused it? Years of typing?

DarkFury

Yeah... they made 2 incisions slicing through that ligament. The surgery itself wasn't all that bad... kinda like going through the "drive thru" as far as surgeries go.

I did have to get all dressed in the "surgery gown"... although I still had my sweats on underneath. They had me laid out on the operating table like a fish being ready to be be gutted... and boy do I not like hospitals and operating rooms.

For the most part, I didn't watch at all as the doc went to work. My left arm was fully extended outward and I looked the other way as he did his thing. There was a nurse there that prepped my hand with some anesceptic solution and whatnot... and then the doctor came in a short while afterwards. There were like 4 nurses/techs in there, and they were talking to me the whole time (mostly keeping me calm...) They asked me all kinds of questions about what I do, about computers, etc...

I will say this... when he put a needle in my hand to deliver the local anesthetic, man... that almost made me jump off of that table. After that, my hand went numb and then he did his thing. My hand felt like a piece of leather just sitting there after that and he proceeded to cut on me and stitched me back up.

My big thing is... when I get stressed, my body starts sweating... and during the surgery I was sweating buckets. Definitely not a good look. But I got through it... I pretty much had to really gather myself and stay as calm but focused as possible. (every inch of my being wanted off of that table...ASAP!)

It wasn't a bad surgery.. but definitely not something I'd like to do often I guess I just have a hidden "hospital phobia" or someting.

As far as "causes" of CTS... well that's just one of those things that might be partly genetic, partly "what you do". For the most part, computer typing doesn't "cause" CTS.. but it may aggravate the symptoms. What causes CTS is not having enough room in the "carpal tunnel" for the nerve to send/receive signals from the hand. Typing, bending, etc... of the wrist aggravates this nerve as there isn't much room for it under that ligament. The more and more you aggravate it, the number your hand gets.

chrissy

Yeah, mom had it.

They have done the "bent wrist" test on me so far. After moving, I have no strength in my wrists/hands whatsoever. I can't open bottles, jars. I sleep in braces, my hands will go numb. I can't drive more than 4 hrs without a brace - my wrists and hands will swell. We found that out on the trip here.

I know it's coming. I need to find a new doc here.

Glad to know your feeling better Thanks for answering the questions

DarkFury

No problem chrissy...

Pretty much, getting over the FEAR of the procedure is the first step.. .and honestly, if you are in pain, it's a step in the right direction.

BTW, today, the fingers on my left hand no longer feel "numb"... I guess they are fully awake now.

I played more UT3 last night... so I know that I still have my "touch" and keyboard dexterity, yet I still can't lift anything right now with these stiches still in my hand. Honestly, at Day 5, the freakin' bandage on my left hand is giving me more problems than the incision. (Stupid itchy bandage... plus the adhesive is tugging at my arm hairs. OWWWWIEEE!!! )

DarkFury

BTW... I had to change my dressing today (I had some bleeding from the incision)

I took a few pics of my hand... however they might be a little bit graphic to post openly. If you are curious about what the after surgery scar looks like give me a holler (and maybe I'd post them in the thread if folks don't get too offended...)

Markel

Hope everything works out ok for you DF.

I've got a very slight (self-diagnosed) compression of the ulnar nerve in my left elbow - my left pinky and the left half of the ring finger are slightly numb. It had been much worse in the past (to the point that it affected my grip). (I remember hearing during a football game that Brett Favre took a hit and had numbness in his pinky and ring finger - I knew what had happened. )

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stay low... keep moving...

chrissy

Markel, that is what Donnie has! cubital tunnel syndrome! Well, at least that is how they are treating his scar tissue build up that has resulted in the same symptoms in his left hand. He had a cyst removed from his forearm and as it healed, he never got back full feelings in those two fingers. They are constantly "asleep".

It's going on 3 years now since they removed the cyst.

And yeah, DF, I would like to see the scar.. I think.

DarkFury

When I get home, I'll PM you the link to the Photobucket image...

Stupid work filters won't let me get to it from here.

DarkFury

Well the stitches came out today... so now I have 2 more weeks to wear my arm brace while the ligament repairs itself.

So far so good... The Doctor looked at my incision scar and said everything looked normal. Plus, since I don't have any pain in my fingers right now, that's a good thing as well.

YAY!!!