Do you have pins and needles in your fingers? Do you want to know if it is carpal tunnel?
Pins and needles in your fingertips is not always carpal tunnel
Fingertip pins and needles is relatively common with a reported 14% of the population getting it. That’s a lot of people! But all those people do not have carpal tunnel syndrome.
So what causes pins and needles. Pins and needles is most commonly caused by compression to a nerve somewhere along its journey from the spine to the tissue it supplies.
In the case of the nerves that supply the hand, they have a convoluted journey on the way to the hand and there are many places where the nerves can be irritated.
The nerve irritation can happen anywhere from the neck to the hand; however, it most commonly happens in the neck, the elbow or the wrist.
The other question you may have is, what causes the irritation? The irritation is caused by pressure on the nerve, which can be traumatic, pathological at worst, but is most commonly inflammation.
The location of the irritation will determine the nerve or nerves that are affected and the symptoms that you get. Assessing and diagnosing the symptoms is critical in determining where the irritation or irritations are. Yes! You can have more than one.
The location of pins and needles is the simplest and possibly most important symptom. The location of the pins and needles will provide great incite to the specific nerve or nerves involved and then the possible locations where the irritation is occurring.
The next sign that you can check is the tone of the muscles in the palm of the hand. Each nerve supplies specific muscles in the hand. Any variation in the muscle tone between your hands can help you further confirm what nerve or nerves are involved.
Another thing you can do is stress or stretch the nerves and see if you can reproduce the pins and needles.
Reoccurring pins and needles is never something to be taken lightly. Identifying the location of irritation is critical in determining the correct diagnosis and appropriate method of treatment to produce the best outcome.
Do want to quickly check whether the pins and needles you get in your fingers is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Here are 3 things you can check if you have carpal tunnel:
- Location of the pins and needle – carpal tunnel will affect the thumb and first two fingers. If it effects the ring and middle finger or the whole hand then it is not just carpal tunnel syndrome and is more likely to be an issue closer to the spine.
- Muscle wasting in your palm – If you compare both palms do you observe any difference between the muscle bulk at the base of each thumb. The nerve that supplies this muscle is the one irritated with carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Tap your wrist – if you tap your wrist in the middle and get pins and needles in the first three fingers then it is highly likely to be related to the nerve associated with carpal tunnel.
If you think you have carpal and tunnel, or you still aren’t any clearer, but would like some help. Post me on our Facebook page and I’ll help you work out what’s going on.
