Causes and treatment of numbness and tingling in hands

By Lee Sung-hun

Modern technology has brought many benefits to our lives, but it has not been so kind to people’s postures. Many of us are bound to our desks sitting in front of computers, typing on keyboards or moving the mouse. Along with the advent of smartphones, we see so many people during their subway commute constantly swiping and tapping on handset screens. Such people may experience shooting pains in parts of the hands and fingers along with numbness. In Oriental medicine, this type of pain is viewed as the result of wind, cold and dampness seeping pathogens into the joints, bones and muscles. If the hand feels slightly numb and aches, the symptom itself can be localized, but the cause may be the entire hand and wrist and sometimes even from elbows, shoulders or the neck. There are a number of underlying causes that can cause pain and numbness in hands. Today’s column will discuss a couple of the more common causes and their corresponding treatment options.

1. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)

The carpal tunnel is the passageway through which nerves and tendons pass in the wrist. Those who have previously fractured wrist bones, or work on computers for extended periods, or constantly do household chores often complain of numbness, tingling or burning sensations particularly in their thumbs, index and middle fingers and palms. Such aches and pains are due to a narrowing of the carpal tunnel, which puts pressure on the nerves passing through it. Generally the little fingers and the back of the hand do not display such symptoms. The progress of the symptoms is gradual rather than sudden, and worsens during night time.

For treatment of CTS, acupuncture, apitoxin (bee venom) injections and moxibustion can be administered on areas where the nerves are compressed. As the main cause of CTS is actually over-use of the wrists, for the best results patients are advised to limit the movement of their wrists if possible.

2. Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (TOS)

The thoracic outlet is the space between the collarbone and the first rib bone on top of the ribcage. Blood vessels (arteries and veins) and nerves pass through this narrow space. TOS describes a number of disorders that are caused when any such nerves and blood vessels are compressed abnormally. In most cases, the pressure is caused by tension in the surrounding muscles. X-ray or electromyogram generally reveals nothing out of order, and yet patients can complain of pain in the shoulder and arms with numbness throughout the fingers. Some patients wake up in the middle of their sleep due to the numbness or tingling and can feel the loss of grip lifting something heavy. Patients feel their hands getting colder when the arms are suspended loose. Hands and arms may swell up, and in severe cases the tone of the skin can also change. Some patients can feel severe pain in their chest, which is often mistaken as angina.

The main cause is maintaining a bad posture. Therefore, correcting the posture is an essential part of the treatment, which is achieved with Chuna-chiropracty. To relax the tense muscles, acupuncture and apitoxin treatments can be applied.

3. Cervical Radiculopathy

Cervical radiculopathy is a dysfunction of the nerves that are compressed in the cervical spine. The most common cause of the compression is from a ruptured cervical disk, and the narrowing of the neural passage due to degenerative changes in the bones and disks. The numbness and tingling are not limited to the hands, but rather across the entire arm. Patients also feel pain in the head, neck and shoulders. If laying the head on a raised pillow, or pulling the chin in while stretching the arms backwards causes numbness in the arm, there is a high probability of cervical radiculopathy.

Much like TOS, the root cause is bad posture. Chuna-chiropracty aims to correct that cause, and the tense muscles in the neck, shoulder and back are treated with acupuncture and apitoxin.

There are several other illnesses that can cause hand numbness and tingling, such as posttraumatic effects. However, people who work with their hands and wrists a lot, and people with bad sitting postures are most prone to hand numbness. Some patients fear that their hand numbness and tingling is stroke-related, but this is not always the case. To prevent it, I advise all my patients about the importance of correct postures. Not lifting heavy objects, and limiting hours in front of the computer using a mouse or keyboard can definitely help. Avoiding abnormal strain on the wrist in small everyday activities can be minute but very helpful.

The writer practices Korean Oriental medicine at the UN Oriental Medical Clinic in Hannam-dnog, Seoul. He can be reached at sung_hun@naver.com.