Carpal tunnel syndrome accounts for over $1 billion in direct costs annually in the United States.  It is the most common nerve compression disorder in the upper extremity.  Carpal tunnel syndrome is characterized by pain in the hand and fingers due to compression of the median nerve.  It may be caused by repetitive movements over a long period, or by fluid retention, and is characterized by sensations of tingling, numbness, or burning.

I am sure most of you know a relative, friend or coworker that has dealt with carpal tunnel syndrome.  

The other day, Bob Gazso had told me an intriguing story about his mother, who was previously diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome.

He said, “My mother had pains in her hands and wrists about 8 years ago, so she went to see a neurologist.  The neurologist ran some nerve conduction tests and was diagnosed with bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome.  The doctor recommended surgery to alleviate the symptoms.

“The body works in alternating patterns of stable segments, connected by mobile joints. If this pattern is altered- dysfunction and compensation will  occur.” -Grey Cook

All of us have experienced pain or discomfort at some point of our lives, so what have we done to treat it? 

Maybe you’ve visited the doc just for him/her to say: “Take this pain medication”. Or maybe a practitioner has told you, “ Why don’t you ice it, stretch it, massage it?” How did any of those methods serve you? Probably didn’t work well, right? 

My first few years as a strength and conditioning coach I assumed that my clients who had back pain due to having tight back muscles, that the muscles needed stretching, or that the core was weak. But now, after furthering my education in assessment protocols such as Functional Movement Screening, TPI, and others, I have learned that treating the symptoms does not fix the source of pain.

A few weeks ago, we had a client reporting to us about knee pain on his left leg when walking. He also talked about having issues balancing on his left foot and even showed us the custom orthotic insoles that his doctor recommended that he wear. Although they helped improve his ankle stability and alleviate some of his knee pain, he said that prolonged walking or running would still agitate the knee even if he wore his insoles.

We had him perform a one-leg balance test, and when he stood on only his left foot, he would immediately begin to fall to the side. Utilizing the Neurokinetic Therapy protocol, we found that his left tibialis posterior, a calf muscle, was compensating for his quads. In fact, it was so overactive and tight that it was causing his foot to arch excessively. This excessive arch made it hard for him to balance and find stability, but more importantly, it caused him to suffer from knee pain, because the knee joint was trying to stabilize for his ankle. We released his tibialis posterior and did an exercise to strengthen his quads and when he stood up on just his left foot again, he didn’t fall to the side! Even better, when we had him walk around, he had much less pain in the knee.