Playing with arthritis-carpal tunnel

[Larry R]

Does anyone out there have this problem, and if so how do you deal with it. I think I have arthritis in my left hand, most likely the result of a past injury, and while it hasen't effected my playing, I'am concerned about the future. I've been getting alot of numbness and occasional soreness when I go to bed, but fortunately it's mainly in the area below the little finger and in the palm. It didn't seem to be a big concern, but now that I'm practicing guitar, mandolin and 5 string banjo every day, I had some soreness in my index finger while playing guitar this morning, later in the Evening when I switched to mandolin I had no pain whatsoever.

[Klaus Wutscher]

I seem to recall that board member Jim Richter has developed a carpal tunnel syndrom. His solution was to use low tension strings (GHS silk and bronze) on his Kimble. Of course, in such a case, setup is crucial. Listening to him, it seems to work. I had problems with my left hand years ago due to a "baseball bat" grip on the left hand and some bad practice habbits. I think making an effort of playing as relaxed as possible wil go a long way - watch your breathing, which is the ultimate key to relaxation.

[Christopher Howard-Williams]

I have this in my left hand. In the joint of little finger (boy it hurts if I put pressure on it). I started to learn things with minimum of use of little finger. Now it is spreading to ring finger. Also now in the base of the thumb.
My doc prescribed a medicine made up of (I think, translated from French) "Sodium of Chondroitin sulfate". I have been taking it for nearly 2 months and I am beginning to think it may help. He said take it for four months and then see what happens. If it works, I can take it for a few months every year.
You cannot cure this but apparently in about 50% of cases this type of medicine can slow progress. Good luck.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Hi Larry - I had a similar problem a few years ago in my left ring finger.When i bent it,it stayed 'locked' & 'clicked'when i opened it. My problem was diagnosed as 'trigger finger',you can read all about it on the 'net & the pain is due to the finger tendon having a swollen area which is inflamed.The swelling won't allow the tendon to pass through the little cartilage 'loop' that hold the tendon in place.If it does slip through,it 'triggers' ie clicks. I had an op.to cure mine but i'm getting it again in my middle finger on my left hand.
In the USA,you seem to be able to effect a cure by having the area close to the swollen tendon injected with a 'steroid' to reduce the swelling,apparently it's effective in 65% of cases.Over here in the dark age UK,they don't seem to know about it.The surgeon i went to see
had never heard of that treatment.
I also seem to be getting Arthritis in my 1st finger left hand which stops me curling my finger up into my palm properly,but the good news there is that after an hour or so playing,it's as free as a bird - so what the heck,i'll just leave it !
After the op.on my left hand,my physio.at the Hospital told me to soak my hand in water as comfortably hot as i could stand & then get a facecloth,soak it in the hot water & wring it out a few times until you feel your finger(s) loosen up - it works,
Saska

[hepcat mando]

Hey Larry,
# # #I would see a doctor first off as you'll get a better diagnosis. The sensation in the palm under your little finger may be caused by cubital tunnel syndrome. If I don't consistently stretch and massage the muscles of my forearm I will occasionally get the same issue with numbness in my 3rd & 4th fingers in the middle of the night. Stretching and warming up before you play and breaking up your practice schedule can help the situation but you should be careful as to how much your playing right now. I hope it works out.

[swinginmandolins]

I have had problems with my left hand with swelling, numbness and trigger finger in the past. Since I don't do high paced production upholstry any longer some symptoms went away. I think what has bassically eliminted the rest of the symptoms was switching to lighter strings Jazzmando JM-11's, and playing with as low of an action as I can. Another is working on a light grip. Practicing noting with the least amount of pressure needed for a clean note. I also try to break for 5-10 minutes for every hour.

[red7flag]

I am in my fifties and after a week of severe 10 hour a day playing, I had pain from arthritis. I did some investigating and started taking glucosamine and chondroitin. I have since added MSM. I have not had any serious problems with arthritis since. I am now on a maintainence dose, one of each a day. I do try to provide a few rests when playing strenuously.
Tony

[JimRichter]

Yep, I have carpal tunnel in both my left and right wrists (in addition to pinched nerves in each elbow). #It's of moderate severity and I'm a step from having to have surgery. #Feb 5 I go in to get cortisone injections. #I've used splints but the return has been marginal. #A rheumatoid doctor I went to (when I thought I had rheumatoid arthiritis but it again turned out to be an extension of the carpal tunnel) told me I shouldn't wait to get something done cause otherwise I would just allow the median nerve to be damaged further to where surgery would be required.

I have worked a lot on playing position as well as warm up. #Set up has been crucial as Klaus said earlier. #

Maybe Scotti Adams can chime in here. I know he had carpal tunnel surgery this past year or late last year. Perhaps he can share anything he's done differently.

Jim

[Salmon Man]

I'm 39, have played for 27 years and started developing arthritic pain in my left thumb last year. #I have had mild carpal tunnel for several years. #Guitar, mando don't bother it anywhere near as much as fly fishing. #I've found the braces very helpful for carpal tunnel (at night and fly fishing).

Be aware that carpal tunnel can be an indicator of pre-diabetes. Cortisone would not be good for this condition.

[Ken Sager]

If you're in pain from playing you're doing something wrong. Take some lessons to identify where your technique might be lacking.

If the pain persists and you know you're playing with the proper technique talk to a doctor. Why take chances on free internet advice?

Seriously,
Ken

[dochardee]

Acupuncture can be a big help in treating carpal tunnel/cubital tunnel syndrome. I developed a severe case of cubital tunnel syndrome 6 weeks ago (most likely from resting my elbows on the computer desk for long periods of time.) Numbness and weakness in the ring and little finger of my left hand was so bad I could not play. Usual conservative treatment is to wear a splint on the elbow when sleeping to keep the arm straight, let the nerve recover. My doctor doesn't recommend steroid injections, says in his experience not worth the trouble. He recommended I just try the splint for 8 weeks before considering surgery. And correct the posture problems at the computer desk.

After two weeks of numb fingers and no mandolin, I remembered that acupuncture had helped me with back pain in the past, and found a good Chinese trained acupuncture physician. After two weeks of acupuncture twice a week, I've started to recover. Still slightly numb, but I can play again. I'm hopeful that I'll get a full recovery with help from acupuncture and will be able to avoid surgery.

[John Flynn]

Three things that have helped me, a lot. 1) The stretches on musicianshealth.com, 2) Training myself to keep my wrist straight when playing, and 3) My doc puts me on 4 Advil 3X a day for joint inflamation, but you should consult your doctor for what you do. If my wrist is already inflamed, none of that is a complete instant fix, but it does help a lot and reasonably quickly. But if I do 1 and 2 consistently and 3 at the first sign of trouble, for me it is a 100% long-term fix. Your mileage may vary.

[Got8Strings]

I had carpal tunnel surgery on both wrists years ago. Now, when playing the mandolin certain movements with the left hand are uncomfortable, so I have learned to work around those.

Good hand position is probably the key factor for me to avoid discomfort- no cocking the hand back - the back of my hand is nearly even with the back of my wrist. Some fast passages cause discomfort, so I play fewer notes or find another way - sometimes just playing an alternate fingering is the solution.

You just need to find out what works for you. Don't beat yourself up about having to make adjustments.

[MandoNoob]

In the past 2 days I have developed pain in the ring finger of the left hand which is probably carpal tunnel syndrome (pain in that particular finger alone is a classic symptom). I had tingly pain in the left wrist for a few weeks before Xmas which turned out to be a pinched nerve that eventually popped back into place, to my great relief, although it's not been entirely right since. That was certainly caused by sudden intensive piano playing... having not played piano for 20 years my wrist & fingers weren't used to doing those kind of movements for hours each day, and I've now damaged a nerve as a result. Stupid.

I was feeling pretty low about this until just now, I felt the end of my mandolin-playing days were just around the corner, but I was heartened to read that other players have worked around it. I also found this inspiring quote on familydoctor.org:



How serious is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome usually isn't serious. With treatment, the pain will usually go away and you'll have no lasting damage to your hand or wrist.


So I'm optimistic!