Treatment for pain and swelling in wrist after needle insertion?

Posted on Mon, 17 Mar 2014

Question: Prior to cataract surgery nurse had great difficulty inserting needle for anesthetic. [2 months ago] Since that time my right hand has been too painful to use and there is swelling in my wrist below my thumb. Skin also sensitive to touch. Swelling is worse when attempting to use hand. Is this repairable? XXXXXXX YYYY@YYYY

Answered by Dr. Sudhir Kumar (2 hours later)

Brief Answer: Yes, it is repairable. Detailed Answer: Hi Ms XXXXXXX, Thank you for posting your query. Based on the description of your symptoms, you seem to be suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). In CTS, there is compression of median nerve at the level of wrist. This happens due to soft tissue injury/inflammation in the region of median nerve. The diagnosis can be confirmed by nerve conduction studies and ultrasound scan. You would improve with medications such as pregabalin or gabapentin capsules. In some cases, a minor surgery may be needed. I hope my answer helps. Please get back if you have any follow up queries or if you require any additional information. Wishing you good health, Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, India Click on this link to ask me a DIRECT QUERY: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar My BLOG: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.in

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar