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  3. Carpal Tunnel

6 weeks post op

  1. It is almost 6 weeks since i had open surgery on my dominant hand. Am still having a lot of problems with sharp nerve pain and stiffness in the morning. Is this normal?

    I had no symptoms prior to the op. I went for a NCS/EMG for the nerves in my neck as have had a worsening neck/shoulder problem for 2 and a half years. I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel in both wrists (my neck nerves were fine). I am due to have the other wrist done mid July (no outward symptoms there either) but am loathed to do so as that wrist is doing all the things the other one cannot do at the moment.

    Does anyone have any suggestions of what to take or rub on for the relief of nerve pain? Have tried Ibuleve cream (recommended by a pharmacist) and EMLA cream but neither have been much help.

  2. hi hope you are feeling a bit better now i had both wrists done by open surgery 2 years ago. i must say it took a lot longer than 6 weeks for the first to heal, infact had my left done 7 weeks after right and couldnt do much at all. Two years on and wrists and hands are much better , but have been diagnosed with cervical spondylosis which causes as you mentioned neck shoulder arm and hand nerve pain .If you are still experiencing your other symptoms perhaps it would be an idea to discuss the possibility of cs with your doctor. You probably wear wrist splints at night anyway but if not i would definatly recommend them i still wear mine now as they also help with the cs pain. 2 years on from my ops and i am glad i persevered and went for the second op even though it was hard to get over. Hope this helps .

  3. If you were not having any symptoms then why have the surgery in the first place? I am not tryi g to be smart or funny with you here but without knowing what the surgeons recomended and why it seems an obvious question. if your car was running well you wouldn't go in and tear the engine to bits with the risk of introducing damage whilst doing so, would you? Same principle here. surgeons love to operate,it's what they do after all.

    A number of years ago my left ankle was in a very bad way due to damage causwd by Rheumatoid Disease. The surgeon wanted to fuse the joint, no discussion, that was the option. I asked for a second opinion knowing that good things were happening with replacement ankle joints. Result, an ankle joint was fitted in 2008,in brief, the best move I could have made, a fantastic result.

    What I am getting at is that the surgeons do not always know best, they are not the gods they think they are and getting a second opinion is often a wise move. After your experience of having surgery inflicted on you when there have been no symptoms seems downright weird, go get a second opinion

    b

    efore they operate on your other s

  4. Hi Chery (Daddyo i will reply to you separately)

    Things are slowly on the mend thanks. Did a spot of light gardening yesterday and had a pretty awful night. I know the standard recovery times are a little on the conservative side now but its good to hear from others experiences.

    I cannot afford to have the other wrist done until i have more movement and less pain in my dominant wrist as there is no one to help me in the home. I got my maths a little wrong on my original post - twas coming up to 5 weeks not 6. It is now 8weeks to the day. As i'm concerned i've booked an outpatient appt for mid July to discuss options with the consultant - by then it'll be 3 months. 2nd op due 7 Aug. I don't wear night splints. Thanks for the heads up re CS. I had scoured the internet for my symptoms but didn't come up with anything.

    I have had so many tests for the original problem with my shoulder/neck which was caused by a fall on to my shoulder on ice on to concrete 2 and a half years ago. All tests have been inconclusive. My doctor is in agreement that i should have the shoulder problem sorted out next. He suggested i try Galpapentin if the nerve pain continues but i'll see how things go.

    Thanks again for your informative post.

    Best wishes

  5. Hi Daddyo

    I know surgeons love to operate as its not the 1st time i've gone under the knife. In the last 2 and a half years since the original problem surfaced after a fall on my shoulder on ice on to concrete i have had osteopathic treatment by 3 diiferent practitioners, deep tissue massage, shoulder cortizone injections and ultrasound plus neck MRI all to no avail.

    The consultant seems to think the problem is now coming from my neck not my shoulder - not sure of his logic on this (but as he's specialised on this topic for over 16 years he probably knows more than me) and will be discussing it further on 17 July before any further op. Next op will not happen unless i am convinced it is the right thing to do.

    I went to have the NCS/EMG test to see if the nerves in my neck were being trapped and they weren't, however it was then that i was diagnosed with carpal tunnel in both wrists and i saw the results for myself. This test was not carried out by the surgeon but by a specialist whose field only covers nerve tests. I was a bit miffed as i went in with 1 problem yet came out with 3!

    The symptoms of dead arms at night have persisted despite having 1 op done. I hear what you are saying re having the ops done for the sake of it but a lot of investigation has gone in to the conclusion.

    Having said that i will not have the 2nd op done on 7 Aug unless i am totally convinced that it will cure the problem. I have done so much research worldwide on the web as to what the original shoulder/neck problem is and even the consultant is not sure - which doesn't fill me with much confidence.

    I hope that explains the situation more clearly and thanks for your post.

    Best wishes

  6. Hi Meganpooch

    I posted as I did because I have had multiple issues since 2009 resulting in 3 major surgeries in the lumber region of my spine and the results have been disasterous, my surgeon gave me a lot of confidece that the initial surgery would solve my problems but here I am 3 years down the line with the last surgery being carried out as a full blown emergency with the caveat that I might not walk after the surgery. Thankfully I can, although only a few feet before the most incredible pain kicks in, I am left with constant burning/freezing sensation in my right foot and painful pins and needles in both legs.

    I mention all this really because my initial experience was that everything would be fine after the surgery but I am effectively left a cripple now. A recent MRI has shown massive issues in my whole spine including my neck, which brings me round to where I am really coming from. I too get the terrible dead arms that you mention and I'm sure you too get the dreadful pain and pins and needles when the arms come back to'life'. The MRI shows Posterior disc osteophyte complex causing significant narrowing of the central canal with some chronic thinning of the spinal cord at the C5/6 level, I am assuming this is the cause of my dead arms etc.

    Would I let them operate to try and resolve this? After my experience with the lumbar region, not a chance! I honestly feel like I have been dealt with by a bunch of amateurs who were groping in the dark rather than consumate professionals who knew exactly what they were doing and gave clear lines of comunications to me the patient.

    As you can gather based on my experiences, I am extremely sceptical of neurosurgeons or anyone who is involved with fiddling around with nerves.

    Anyway, I wish you well for your July 17th consultation; I'm glad to hear that you too carry a level of uncertainty and will only let them proceed with surgery unless you are truly convivced it is the right way to go. Keep us posted.

    Regards,

    D

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