What Can My Doctor Do?

There are a number of treatments your doctor may use to alleviate CTS. During the day and/or night it may help to use a wrist splint, which keeps the wrist straight or slightly extended (no more than 15 degrees). Try to combine a splint with a real effort to change the positioning of your hand during the activity that causes you pain so that the problem doesn't recur once you no longer use the splint.
If a splint and anti-inflammatory medications, which reduce swelling around the nerve, don't ease the condition, your doctor may recommend a steroid injection. This may be warranted if you continue to have considerable pain or persistent numbness. Such shots should be given by a rheumatologist, hand specialist or other physician who is experienced in the procedure.
Ask your doctor about ultrasound treatment, which physical therapists often use to reduce tissue inflammation. In the late 90s, a study done at the University of Vienna in Austria, found that ultrasound therapy diminished the symptoms of CTS.
If these treatments are ineffective, or if you develop weakness in your thumb at any time, you may need carpal tunnel release surgery to relieve pressure on the nerve. In this procedure, the surgeon cuts the carpal tunnel ligament that covers the median nerve, to relieve the pressure on that nerve. This is usually a simple operation that can be done on an outpatient basis. Results from surgery are generally quite good if severe weakness has not developed.