Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Tests & Diagnosis

Conditions & Diseases: Bones, Muscles & Joints

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Medical Tests & Diagnosis Methods/Tools

Different diagnostic methods to detect Carpal Tunnel Syndrome include:

Physical Examination: During a physical examination, the wrist is examined for certain characters such as tenderness, swelling, warmth, and discoloration. All the fingers are tested for sensation and the muscles at the base of the hand examined for strength.

Tinel’s Test: In this test, a tingling response in one or more fingers due to tapping of the median nerve at the wrist by a physician indicates damage to the median nerve.

Phalen’s Test: In this test, the patient is asked to place his hands together in front at shoulder level and bend the wrists down at right angles for one minute and observe the feeling. If the patient feels tingling in the fingers then it may be confirmed as CTS due to compression of median nerve.

Electromyography: In this test, an electrical current is passed through the patient’s forearm by placing electrodes on the forearm. The measurement of speed of transmission of messages through the median nerve indicates the severity of damage to the median nerve.

Blood Tests: Blood tests indicate medical conditions associated with CTS such as thyroid hormone level, blood sugar level and protein analysis (5), (6) & (7).

Article by Kona Vishnu, MS
Medical Writer,
OmniMedicalSearch.com