I saw quit a few cases: people suffering from Carpal Tunnel.
It is starts holding your wrist in a certain position.
Typical causes are, riding with a bike, everyday, riding 50 miles.
Another cause is THE COMPUTER. People can suffer a lot, just look at the position of your hand, putting your wrist on the table, and your fingers on the keyboard.
Reading your "symptoms", the way you describe the pain, it can be an other pathology as well.
These symptoms, tingling and numbness the discomfort radiates up to my shoulder, can also come from the neck or shoulder. THESE TWO have to be excluded, easy these days by X-RAY and ECHOGRAPHY. A lot of these symptoms are very common if you have "arthrosis" in your neck, or YOUNGER people, because of a muscular contraction (between every the vertebra, you have little muscles, and if they are subject of, again, repetitive movements or position, the contraction can "push" on your nerves, giving a tingling, and a real discomfort, with radiation to the wrist and hand. Some people suffering from "inflammation" in the ROTATOR CUFF = all muscles used to move your shoulder, caused by repetitive movements leading to almost invisible little tendon lesions. Finally carpal tunnel= one of the major nerves to use your hand, passes through a kind of bridge, in the wrist, and if that tunnel get's smaller, caused by a few problems, there is a "nerve entrapment". As told, this pain can be worse at night, it feels like your hand is "sleeping", and can go up to your elbow and shoulder/neck. SO, YOU NEED IN FACT TO EXCLUDE THE FIRST 2 POSSIBILITIES. One major device to prove it, is an electromyographic investigation, putting very fine needles in your arm, they can see if there is a problem. (compare it with electricity) . The cause=often a combination of factors. Congenital: the carpal tunnel is simply smaller in some people than in others, and important: work stress; repeated use of vibrating hand tools.
In fact there is little clinical data to prove whether repetitive and forceful movements of the hand and wrist during work or leisure activities can cause carpal tunnel syndrome.
DIAGNOSIS (to be 100% sure) electrodiagnostic tests as told, Ultrasound imaging can show impaired movement of the median nerve.
TREATMENT: resting the affected hand and wrist for at least 2 weeks, avoiding activities who worsen the problem. Like playing guitar: if playing guitar and you start feeling pain STOP!!
ibuprofen, feldene.., and more "aggressive= corticosteroids, in combination with lidocaine (anesthetic) can be injected directly into the wrist. Exercises like stretching and strengthening exercises can be helpful and even better under supervision by a physical therapist.If every "non aggressive" treatment fails = surgery: Carpal tunnel release is one of the most common surgical procedures and recommended if symptoms last for 6 months.
IT IS A LONG ANSWER, BUT I AM A MEDICAL DOC, so I REALLY HOPE THAT THIS ADVISE WILL HELP YOU. I worked long to give you a decent answer, and it is amazing how this appears again, since I had to stop working, almost 4 years ago.
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