newsprompt.coCAUSE OF HAND PAIN
Numbness in one or both hands describes a loss of sensation or feeling in your hand or fingers. Often, hand numbness may be accompanied by other changes, such as a pins-and-needles sensation, burning or tingling. Your arm, hand or fingers may feel clumsy or weak. Numbness can occur along a single nerve in one hand, or it may occur symmetrically in both hands.
Everyone has had pain in the hand, whether it’s just from a bump or perhaps overuse. However, if hand pain persists or is accompanied by tingling, numbness, or weakness that interferes with important daily tasks, such as gripping items or typing on a keyboard, then an underlying condition might exist.There are many causes of hand pain and numbness, including wrist problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome and systemic disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis. What many people don’t know, however, is that hand pain and numbness often stems from a problem in the neck.
How a Neck Problem Causes Hand Pain
When a nerve root in the cervical spine becomes compressed or irritated by a problem in the neck, symptoms can appear anywhere from the shoulder all the way down into the arm, hand and fingers.
Pain that travels along this nerve pathway, the radicular nerve, is called a cervical radiculopathy.
What Cervical Radiculopathy Feels Like in the Hand
Eight nerve roots exit the cervical spine on each side and feed nerve pathways down the shoulders, arms, and hands. These nerve roots are labeled according to the vertebral segment, C1 though C8.
Each nerve root has its own responsibilities for motor and sensory functions to parts of the body, so cervical radiculopathy symptoms can be felt in parts of the body depending on which nerve root is affected.
For radicular pain in the hand, the symptoms of pain, tingling, and/or numbness usually stem from a problem in the cervical spine that affects the C6, C7, or C8 nerve root.
- C6 radiculopathy.Symptoms would typically be felt on the thumb side of the hand and wrist, as well as into the thumb.
- C7 radiculopathy.Symptoms would often be felt on the middle of the hand and wrist, as well as into the index and middle fingers.
- C8 radiculopathy.Symptoms may be felt on the pinky side of the hand and wrist, as well as into the ring and pinky fingers.
Radicular pain can range from mild and achy to sharp and shock-like. There could also be numbness, similar to when an arm falls asleep from laying on it the wrong way, or a tingling sensation that feels itchy or prickly like pins and needles. Some people also describe the nerve pain as feeling like the hand has been left in icy water.
Common Causes of Radicular Pain Symptoms in the Hand
Several neck conditions are capable of irritating a cervical nerve root. Common causes include:
Cervical degenerative disc disease. The discs between the vertebrae lose their cushioning due to aging and general wear and tear over time. The disc degeneration can cause other problems that lead to irritation of a cervical nerve root.
Cervical herniated disc. This condition occurs when the inner part of the disc leaks through the protective outer layers and irritates the nerve root.
Cervical osteoarthritis. This condition occurs when a facet joint in the back of the neck loses too much protective cartilage and becomes arthritic. The resulting bone-on-bone grinding in the joint can eventually lead to nerve root impingement via inflammation and/or growth of bone spurs that press on the nerve.
Cervical foraminal stenosis. If the small hole where the nerve root exits the vertebrae—called the forame —becomes too narrow, then the nerve root can become pinched. A herniated disc or the overgrowth of bone spurs are a couple ways that a foramen might become narrowed.
This is not a complete list of conditions that can cause radicular pain down the arm and into the hand. For instance, one of the less common ways could be a tumor growing in the cervical spine that irritates a nearby nerve root.
Diabetes is one of the most common causes of peripheral neuropathy, accounting for about 30% of cases. In diabetic neuropathy, tingling and other symptoms often first develop in both feet and go up the legs, followed by tingling and other symptoms that affect both hands and go up the arms. About two-thirds of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of nerve damage. In many cases, these symptoms are the first signs of diabetes.
In another 30% of peripheral neuropathy cases, the cause is unknown or “idiopathic.”
WHEN TO SEE A SPECIALIST
It’s important to determine the cause of numbness in one or both of your hands. If numbness persists or spreads to other parts of your body, consult your health care provider for an evaluation. Treatment of numbness in hands depends on the underlying cause.
- Begins suddenly
- Involves a whole arm
- Is accompanied by weakness or paralysis, confusion, difficulty talking, dizziness, or a sudden, severe headache
Schedule an office visit if your numbness:
- Begins or worsens gradually and persists
- Spreads to other parts of the body
- Affects both sides of the body
- Comes and goes
- Seems related to certain tasks or activities, particularly repetitive motions
- Affects only a part of a limb, such as a finger
A common misdiagnosis
There are several conditions that can cause numb fingers, and getting an accurate diagnosis is essential to guide treatments decisions. Common conditions that can lead to finger numbness include:
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the median nerve that enters your hand through a tunnel made by the wrist bones, is compromised, usually resulting in numbness in the thumb, index, and middle finger. Sometimes the numbness is worse at night. If you have severe carpal tunnel syndrome, you may also experience weakness in the thumb muscles of your hand. All of these symptoms can mimic cervical radiculopathy.
Cervical radiculopathy
Cervical radiculopathy (commonly known as a “pinched nerve”) occurs when a nerve exiting your neck is irritated by compression or inflammation. Conditions that commonly cause these cervical radiculopathy include a cervical herniated disc, cervical spinal stenosis, or cervical degenerative disc disease.
Getting an accurate diagnosis
Your physician should start out with a basic health history and exam. A nerve conduction study can confirm or rule out carpal tunnel syndrome. If the specialist suspects the numbness may be caused by cervical radiculopathy, imaging studies like MRIs can be helpful. Diagnosing rheumatoid arthritis can be a bit trickier. An accurate diagnosis will require blood tests and imaging exams along with a full health history.
