Dawn, I Have A Question

hi dawn i know you are going thru a diificult time and i hope you feel better with each passing day....believe me i know what your feeling.
something in one of your posts caught my eye and i have a question, you said you had carpal tunnel surgery?? what does bilateral mean?
today i was diagnosed with carpal tunnel, damage to the median nerve and also in the ulnar nerve in by my elbow, the doctor that did the nerve test says it is significant and he thinks i will need surgery.
i was doing research on carpal tunnel and this one phamphlet i read said that in some cases surgery may lead to scarring of the transverse ligament, the scars could irritate the median nerve causing the symptoms to reoccur.... were you told this before you had the surgery and have you seen good results from your surgery?
also i am worried about pain medication after the surgery, can an addict in recovery have pain medication? julie/jewels
(((((((((((((((((((jewels))))))))))))))))))))))

(((((((((((((((((((dawn))))))))))))))))))))))

bilateral.

example.........sally had bilateral knee surgery.

bilateral............means BOTH knees

love ya
thumper


Hi Jewls!! TGIF. I knew that I had carpal tunnel, as I had all of the classic symptoms, however, my neurological tests, EMG/NCV always back insignficant. This went on for like 10 yrs and finally the doc said if I did not go thru with the surgery I could possibly have irreversible nerve damage. My hands were always numb, tingling, burning at night, and in pain. The doc said that when he did the surgery, my median nerve was so compressed it was about the thickness of a sheet of paper, one of the worst median nerves he had seen in all his years of experience. They will go over all the risks, benefits and alternative treatments with you, but I think the risks of not doing the surgery are more than having the surgery. I put off this surgery for so long because I was a workers compensation claim rep for many years and I have seen a lot of cases in which the surgery was no help at all, even made some worse. But, then again you always hear the complaints and never the good news. I do not regret doing the surgery at all. I have a different kind of pain now, but the numbness, tingling, and burning are gone, but it is no where near what I had before my surgery. I think I need to find a new career, as I am currently employed as a medical transcriptionist and it has taken its toll on my hands. You know, I really cannot honestly answer you regarding the pain meds after surgery, but if you have legit pain and are taking the medication exactly as directed, I don't see how that is a problem. The surgery itself was not that bad at all, the procedure was done quickly. You have some pain afterward, but that is expected. You never realize how much you need your hands until you cannot use one of them!!! I kinda rambled and sort got off track, I hope this answered your question - any more questions, please ask!!! More than happy to help!! :0)