Carpal tunnel syndrome affects up to 10 percent of the population, and is associated with repetitive office tasks, such as data entry and repetitive computer keyboard tasks. It’s caused by increased pressure and irritation on a median nerve that travels from the forearm to your hand through a tunnel in your wrist. The irritation manifests as pain and numbness. Resting the wrist using a splint or brace can be an effective treatment.

DeQuervain’s tendinitis is a swelling of the tendons found along the thumb side of the wrist. Tendons don’t move as they should, due to the swelling and irritation, and they may actually ‘catch’ or ‘pop’, and feel extremely painful all the way up the forearm as well as in the wrist. The pain is more intense when forcefully grasping things or twisting the wrist.

Dupuytren’s contracture is a hereditary thickening of tissue that lies just below the skin of your palm. This condition may cause small nodules or lumps in the palm that do not need treatment, to very thick bands which may eventually pull the fingers into the palm.

Trigger finger is characterized by pain and a ‘catching’, or hanging up, of the motion of the finger. The tendons that help bend the fingers are literally catching in the tunnel they ordinarily glide through, and there’s a popping sensation as they push past the catch point.

In these conditions, rest and anti inflammatory medications may be enough, and your doctor will try these methods first; but when symptoms are severe or do not improve, surgery may be recommended.

Wrist arthroscopy uses tiny arthroscopic incisions to enable the surgeon to see and treat problems inside a joint, even a small one, like the wrist. The wrist is complex, with eight small bones and many connecting ligaments. Tiny probes, forceps, knives and shavers are used in the surgery to correct many problems at the same time.

Open carpal tunnel release is surgery done through a small incision to relieve pressure from nerves going through the wrist and hand. The surgery essentially enlarges the tunnel that nerves travel through, and relieves symptoms by reducing pressure.

Hand Surgery requires a specialized and delicate skill, involving as it does the relationships between muscles, nerves, skin, ligaments, tendons, blood vessels, joints and bone. In order to become members of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand, hand surgeons must have completed a full year of specialized additional training and must pass a rigorous certifying examination. In addition, hand surgeons have received rigorous specialty training in orthopedic, general, or plastic surgery.