Carpal tunnel syndrome

• Can I talk to a doctor on Gotodoctor.ca about my carpal tunnel syndrome?

Yes, Gotodoctor.ca provides virtual care services for carpel tunnel syndrome. A doctor will take a comprehensive in-depth history and may provide you with prescriptions. Depending on the severity of symptoms further recommendations will be provided. 

• What is Carpal tunnel syndrome?

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common entrapment neuropathy a doctor diagnoses in the upper extremity in a primary care clinic setting^[1-3]. It is a result of compression of median nerve as it travels through carpal tunnel. CTS accounts approximately 90% of all neuropathies. When pressure inside carpal tunnel increases, in turn median nerve gets compressed resulting in undesired symptoms^[4].

• What are the symptoms of Carpal tunnel syndrome?

Patient will experience an ache or pain along the areas supplied by median nerve. The palmar aspect of the thumb, index and middle fingers, and radial half of the ring finger are supplied by median nerve and pain is distributed along these areas. Patient will also experience numbness, paresthesia or pins and needles sensation and a difficulty of gripping^{[1, 5]}.

• How is Carpal tunnel syndrome treated?

A patient with mild to moderate disease can be managed with conservative treatment. A doctor may offer a combination of physical therapy, splinting, therapeutic ultra sound and a prescription of corticosteroids at the initial stages at the clinic. Surgical decompression may be offered at the clinic for patients who does not improve after conservative treatment. A prescription of local corticosteroid injection may be done to postpone surgery for at least a year^{[5, 6]}.

• How can an online doctor on Gotodoctor.ca treat Carpal tunnel syndrome?

Virtual care services provided by Gotodoctor.ca offer patients with easy access to online doctors. An appointment can be easily made with an online doctor. An online doctor will take a comprehensive history of your signs and symptoms and may provide you with prescriptions^{[4, 6-9]}. Prescriptions can be obtained by online doctors. Virtual care services provided by Gotodoctor.ca assure comfort, convenience and higher level of care for the patient.

References

1. Bland, J.D.P., Carpal tunnel syndrome. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2007. 335(7615): p. 343-346.
2. LeBlond, R.F., Clinical Diagnosis of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. JAMA, 2000. 284(15a): p. 1924-1925.
3. MacDermid, J.C. and J. Wessel, Clinical diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome: a systematic review. Journal of Hand Therapy, 2004. 17(2): p. 309-319.
4. Tofte, J.N., et al., Postoperative care via smartphone following carpal tunnel release. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, 2018. 26(4): p. 223-231.
5. Burton, C., L.S. Chesterton, and G. Davenport, Diagnosing and managing carpal tunnel syndrome in primary care. The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2014. 64(622): p. 262-263.
6. Fuzier, R., et al., Analgesic Drug Prescription After Carpal Tunnel Surgery: <em>A Pharmacoepidemiological Study Investigating Postoperative Pain</em&gt. Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine, 2018. 43(1): p. 19.
7. De Gennaro, R., et al., A telemedicine approach to carpal tunnel syndrome: is it useful? A 2 year retrospective analysis in the province of Venice. Clinical Neurophysiology, 2019. 130(1): p. e5.
8. Gennaro, R., et al., A telemedicine approach to carpal tunnel syndrome: is it useful? A 2 year retrospective analysis in the province of Venice. Clinical Neurophysiology, 2019. 130: p. e5.
9. Williams, M., et al., Telephone clinic follow-up following carpal tunnel decompression. J Hand Surg Eur Vol, 2008. 33(5): p. 641-4.