Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: It's Not in Your Wrist

A recent study by the #universityofhelsinki revealed something we observed at the Los Angeles Repetitive Strain Injury Support Group nearly two decades ago: that we were applying much more force than needed to even the simplest task. We recognized immediately this was impeding our recovery. Now science has proved us right. Motor actions require visual information, as well as communication between muscles and neurons. And this study reveals just how important a role your eyes play in that interaction. Patients were shown motor movements made by other people using the same limbs in which they themselves were experiencing pain. Those patients estimated the others were using twice the amount of force than they were. Researchers concluded “the association between pain and movement is so strong” just seeing an action might be enough to activate their pain. They were studying complex regional pain syndrome or CRP, and science does not yet understand the relationship between CRP and carpal tunnel syndrome, if there even is one. But I can tell you from experience that 15 years after my injury, whenever I see someone fall, my flight or flight system sends a rush of adrenaline through my system. That's powerful stuff. On bad days, that means I feel pain. Imagine how that applies to carpal tunnel syndrome: just the anticipation of action can trigger the underlying pain. Add the study's results that a visual stimulus tells your brain to increase the amount of force necessary to complete that motor action, and you’re actually making your carpal tunnel syndrome worse. According to Dr. P. Michael Leahy's mathematical equation for repetitive motion injuries, force is a component in the amount of insult to the tissues.

In both CRP and carpal tunnel syndrome, restoring motor skills is a critical part of rehabilitation. Interestingly, one of the treatments for CRP uses the science behind this study. Called “graded motor imagery”, patients first imagine movements (even that can cause pain), and then make those same movements in front of a mirror, before actually moving on their own as a very gentle exposure to motor actions. I remember my yoga instructor telling us that on the days we were too sick to get out of bed, even imagining a simple yoga routine can help and I found this to be very true! I began imagining myself able to twist far deeper into triangle pose and soon I saw greater results. This method would be particularly helpful in the early acute stages, where any movement at all can cause pain. From my own experience, it's pretty clear that movement may have been what caused my carpal tunnel syndrome; but movement was also how I recovered from it. The trick is to perform the movement correctly. These are terrific tools accessing the brain's neuroplasticity to correct biomechanically maladaptive movement patterns at the heart of carpal tunnel syndrome. @JillGambaro is the author of The Truth About Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Through her book, Facebook page, this blog and her LinkedIn blog, she advocates for patient engagement and employee engagement to resolve carpal tunnel syndrome and keep everyone working healthy. SHARE Labels carpal tunnel syndromehand painrepetitive strain injurywrist pain LABELS: CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME HAND PAIN REPETITIVE STRAIN INJURYWRIST PAIN