Carpal Tunnel in Pregnancy
QUESTION
Dear Midwife,
I'm 31 weeks pregnancy. My weight and blood pressure are fine.
Of late I have started feeling tingling and numbness in my middle three fingers of my right hand. I was asked to get a neurology opinion in which they have found decreased sensory and motor conduction along the supply of the median nerve.
I'm worried. Can you tell me the treatment for this?
ANSWER
The primary treatment is delivery, so you have about 10-11 weeks to go if this is your first pregnancy. Meanwhile, the usual treatment is a wrist brace, which can help but not necessarily cure the problem.
This, too, shall pass! It is definitely an annoyance, but it is not permanently dangerous to you or your baby.
-- Cynthia, CNM. PhD.
Printer-friendly version- Send to friend
- Login or register to post comments
Cynthia Flynn
Cynthia Flynn, CNM. PhD, teaches in the College of Nursing at Seattle University and is President of the American Association of Birth Centers. She also practices midwifery at Valley Medical Center where she cares for pregnant and birthing women, and practices well-woman gynecology, family planning, and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases.
Cynthia founded Columbia Women's Clinic and Birth Center, where she took care of pregnant women and infants up to two weeks of age and attended both birth center and hospital births. Before Cynthia earned her CNM, she worked as a registered nurse in labor and delivery and postpartum and is a certified Doula and Doula trainer.
Cynthia hosts a monthly "Ask the midwife" chat as well as answers questions via our expert section.
Listen to Cynthia live on Pregnancy.org Live: Before, During and After.
