Hi again Everyone,

I have been reading through the posts and it seems to me that alot of you have had MRI's, my doctor has never did one of these and I wonder if I should mention it to him? And one more quick thing, you know that test they have you do where you put your fingers over your thumb and make a fist and then bend your wrist, they have me do this test and it hurts like the dickens, doesn't that suggest some sort of thumb problem too? I have been diagnosed with bilateral carpal tunnel(had the surgery, worked on one but CT came back, never took on the second hand), plus tendinitis/tendonsynovitis, and my doctor said my thumbs hurt because I have arthritis setting in, I am 36 http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif Any thoughts please?

Thank you,
Darlene

The thumb in the fingers test is for de Quervain's syndrome or tenosynovitis. Yes arthritis is common at that joint especially in women, not the end of the world. Your doctor did not do an MRI because the diagnosis of CTS is located at the wrist, where the median nerve runs through the tunnel. When the surgery is done, they perform a release to allow for decreased pressure, which causes the nerve entrapment, at least at that level. The problem with some of these surgeries is that if you had some entrapment somewhere else along the nerve, pronator teres for instance, only part of the problem has been addressed and not the actual cause. I not saying this is your case, but what happens is the nerve is entrapped somewhere closer to the body, such as pronator teres in the forearm, and this makes the nerve more susceptible to injury or irritation further down the line. This is called "double crush syndrome" whci could explain why it came back or did not take in the first place. So you will still test positive for orthopedic tests for CTS. Another possibility is why you got it in the first place and if you did not change the cause, e.g. workplace ergonomics. So a combination of things maybe? Do you rotate your forearms a lot of sit hunched over? Sounds like a nerve problem not nerve root, and would be better diagnosed with electrodiagnostics such as nerve conduction veleocity(NCV) test. Regardless of the diagnosis, keep in mind there is a cause of these repetitive stress/strain injuries as well as other things complicating the issue. Are you diebetic, did you follow rehab, etc. will have some effect on your outcome. I guess teh biggest question would be, why did you get it in the first place? That will help you find a cure. Thumb may or not be related to your CTS, but can be quite painful in itself.

Good luck,

Prouzy