Carpal tunnel exercises

When patients of mine ask, "Are there any carpal tunnel exercises I can do?"....what they really mean is, is there a carpal tunnel exercise that will PREVENT carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS)?

The answer is "maybe"... because there are so many variables that can cause carpal tunnel symptoms

It may depend on what is causing your symptoms and how severe your CTS symptoms are before you can say whether exercises for your carpal tunnel will help you or not.

As you have learned or will learn from this website Carpal-Tunnel-Symptoms.com there are many causative factors regarding carpal tunnel syndrome.

It can depend on your activities, hobbies or occupation. It can depend on things like Wrist Anatomy, Genetics and even from things like bending your wrist back or down too much, as these ergonomic engineers discovered in this article called Carpal tunnel prevention advice from experts.

So as you can see, there may not be ONE specific thing that causes CTS, so there may not be ONE specific type of CTS exercise that prevents it.

Purpose of exercises

One of the purposes of exercises for the carpal tunnel is to allow the tendons in your wrist to move freely back and forth so that they don't get swollen or inflamed within the carpal tunnel itself.

A good carpal tunnel treatment and exercise plan may help in overall hand circulation as well.

Thus preventing the median nerve from getting compressed causing carpal tunnel symptoms.

If the tendons and muscles of the hand and wrist are stretched properly before and after your hand activities, hobby or work, you may notice gradual improvements in your symptoms.

It can also be important to strengthen your hand/wrist muscles and tendons but you may need to wait until your symptoms are settled down.... doing too many extra hand exercises could flare up your symptoms and we don't want that!

Some studies have shown that up to 66% of patients with mild to moderate carpal tunnel symptoms were able to avoid surgery by using this type of carpal tunnel syndrome exercise.

These exercises are more successful in patients with mild symptoms.

These FREE carpal tunnel exercises are quick and easy to do!

Patients who have continued symptoms despite these exercises and Nonsurgical Treatments should discuss Surgery or Cortisone Injection options with their doctor.

After working with and talking to physical therapists for over 17 years, I discovered there are some general guidelines of carpal tunnel therapy or a carpal tunnel exercise that exist.

Since these are "real" carpal tunnel prevention exercises it is important that you discuss them with your healthcare provider since they should know your individual case best.

Each exercise has a specific function or purpose, and I feel these are the best and safest exercises available, and if you feel your CTS is due to work exposure these carpal tunnel exercises can be part of a prevention program that employees can do on their own.

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