**Medical Advisors**

Hey guys. There were a few threads asking some questions about numbness on the left arm/hand. Could you guys offer some insight. Thx.


http://67.18.108.244//showthread.php?t=112190

http://67.18.108.244//showthread.php?t=106944

Well I have a couple of herniated disks from car accidents and that causes me numbness on a regular basis.

The hand/finger numbness mentioned is almost certainly due to some form of a "carpal tunnel" like syndrome...think of it like this, through a rather small area, there are something like 8 tendons and a nerve running through it. An exercise anyone with hand/finger tingling might want to try is this:
*Have a friend grasp your wrist rather tightly with both of his hands (almost like a sandwich). Then you procede to rock your HAND forward then back to neutral...backward....then back to neutral...left....then back to neutral....right then back to neutal. keep at mind all of these motions take place at the wrist joint with your partner adding constant pressure with the sandwiching. Lastly, rotate your hand clockwise...then counterclockwise. This exercise often tends to loosen up some of the tension often held in this rather sensitive area....

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Originally Posted by HeartDocMD

The hand/finger numbness mentioned is almost certainly due to some form of a "carpal tunnel" like syndrome...think of it like this, through a rather small area, there are something like 8 tendons and a nerve running through it. An exercise anyone with hand/finger tingling might want to try is this:
*Have a friend grasp your wrist rather tightly with both of his hands (almost like a sandwich). Then you procede to rock your HAND forward then back to neutral...backward....then back to neutral...left....then back to neutral....right then back to neutal. keep at mind all of these motions take place at the wrist joint with your partner adding constant pressure with the sandwiching. Lastly, rotate your hand clockwise...then counterclockwise. This exercise often tends to loosen up some of the tension often held in this rather sensitive area....

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Awesome post :lift:

sounds like thoracic outlet syndrome. what fingers are numb. definetely doesn't sound like carpal tunnel. sounds like compression of brachial plexus between the scalenes.

need more details
birddog physician

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Originally Posted by HeartDocMD

The hand/finger numbness mentioned is almost certainly due to some form of a "carpal tunnel" like syndrome...think of it like this, through a rather small area, there are something like 8 tendons and a nerve running through it. An exercise anyone with hand/finger tingling might want to try is this:
*Have a friend grasp your wrist rather tightly with both of his hands (almost like a sandwich). Then you procede to rock your HAND forward then back to neutral...backward....then back to neutral...left....then back to neutral....right then back to neutal. keep at mind all of these motions take place at the wrist joint with your partner adding constant pressure with the sandwiching. Lastly, rotate your hand clockwise...then counterclockwise. This exercise often tends to loosen up some of the tension often held in this rather sensitive area....

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Nice post Doc!!!

let me recant. could be carpal tunnel. but need more details

birddog

what about if your glute goes numb? I was doing deadlifts the other day and I had this uncontrolable pain in my right butt cheek. I thought for sure I pulled or tore a muscle but 7 or 8 minutes later I was completely fine. If I would have injured myself it wouldnt have gone away so quickly. Could the test or dbol have caused this?

bump

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Originally Posted by birddog

sounds like thoracic outlet syndrome

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It actually trully could be thoracic outlet syndrome, however, tos has the exact symptoms of carpal tunnel, a hernaited disc in the neck and bursitis of the shoulder. The problem is, short of going to an osteopathic physician(who would use various stretches and manipulatory techniques to release pressure) I know of few ways to actually rectify true tos aside from maybe surgery and for that reason I would rather rule out as a cause carpal tunnel, and others as a way of determinging if they have tos.

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Originally Posted by PrairieDawg

what about if your glute goes numb? I was doing deadlifts the other day and I had this uncontrolable pain in my right butt cheek. I thought for sure I pulled or tore a muscle but 7 or 8 minutes later I was completely fine. If I would have injured myself it wouldnt have gone away so quickly. Could the test or dbol have caused this?

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Hm, your glute goes numb?...Does this numbness sometimes include tingling which often radiates down your leg?...This might be sciatica...or a piriformis like syndrome. More like piriformis syndrome. Try this stretch....

1. Place the right knee on the ground roughly in line with your left shoulder
2. The right foot should be just in front of the left knee
Press your hips towards the ground so that your bodyweight is on your right leg.
3. As you move down the right knee comes closer to the left shoulder.
You should feel a gentle pull deep in the right hip / buttocks

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Originally Posted by HeartDocMD

The hand/finger numbness mentioned is almost certainly due to some form of a "carpal tunnel" like syndrome...think of it like this, through a rather small area, there are something like 8 tendons and a nerve running through it. An exercise anyone with hand/finger tingling might want to try is this:
*Have a friend grasp your wrist rather tightly with both of his hands (almost like a sandwich). Then you procede to rock your HAND forward then back to neutral...backward....then back to neutral...left....then back to neutral....right then back to neutal. keep at mind all of these motions take place at the wrist joint with your partner adding constant pressure with the sandwiching. Lastly, rotate your hand clockwise...then counterclockwise. This exercise often tends to loosen up some of the tension often held in this rather sensitive area....

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Just wanted to add to this: The test above will determine if the medial nerve is undergoing compression. There's another major nerve running down the arm called the ulnar nerve. The symptoms of compression of this nerve include numbness of the pinky and outside half of the ring finger.

There's a test for this as well. With your arm at your side, flex your bicep, bringing your forearm to your shoulder and press on your forearm to ensure maximum flexion. Hold this position for 30secs - 2 minutes. If this results in the described numbness, then you have ulnar tunnel syndrome. The nerve compression is occuring in your elbow joint.

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Originally Posted by MMC78

Just wanted to add to this: The test above will determine if the medial nerve is undergoing compression. There's another major nerve running down the arm called the ulnar nerve. The symptoms of compression of this nerve include numbness of the pinky and outside half of the ring finger.

There's a test for this as well. With your arm at your side, flex your bicep, bringing your forearm to your shoulder and press on your forearm to ensure maximum flexion. Hold this position for 30secs - 2 minutes. If this results in the described numbness, then you have ulnar tunnel syndrome. The nerve compression is occuring in your elbow joint.

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Actually, maybe my above post wasn't clear. What I advised was actually an excerise not a test. Doing the above excercise that I posted...actually helps to relieve some of the strain on the tendons, and median nerve running through the carpal tunnel.

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Originally Posted by MMC78

Just wanted to add to this: The test above will determine if the medial nerve is undergoing compression. There's another major nerve running down the arm called the ulnar nerve. The symptoms of compression of this nerve include numbness of the pinky and outside half of the ring finger.

There's a test for this as well. With your arm at your side, flex your bicep, bringing your forearm to your shoulder and press on your forearm to ensure maximum flexion. Hold this position for 30secs - 2 minutes. If this results in the described numbness, then you have ulnar tunnel syndrome. The nerve compression is occuring in your elbow joint.

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Also, to add to your post. Another easy test is referred to as "Tinels Sign." Lightly, tap on your elbow on its medial aspect...when your hand is hanging at your side....palm facing forwad the medial side is the one closest to your body. If you feel any tingling shooting down the arm, its a positive sign and you might have compression on the ulnar nerve. Unfortunately for this, most common techniques for relieve involve either surgery or steroidal injections into the area.