Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Blog

Though workers’ compensation insurance companies routinely deny that carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by work activities, a recent article suggests that about half of all cases of carpal tunnel syndrome are, in fact, related to work activities. According to the article, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment, approximately two million people in the United States suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome. An estimated 260,000 surgeries are performed each year to address the condition.

“Carpal tunnel syndrome . . . tends to affect people more frequently who use their hands excessively, such as pianists, concert violinists, hairdressers, computer operators, manual laborers, artists, sculptors, dentists, and even neurosurgeons,” says James R. Bean, MD, American Association of Neurological Surgeons president-elect.

One of the common injuries we see in workers’ compensation cases is to the neck. A recent study published on Spineuniverse, a website dealing with neck and back pain suggests that acupuncture relieves neck pain as well as injection therapy does, without the use of any medication. Unfortunately, though, neither of these methods seems to work for even half of patients. According to the study, 43.6% of acupuncture patients described themselves as being at least satisfied with their treatment, as compared to 41.3% of injection patients. Since surgery is a last resort, acupuncture can at least be considered as an option to relieve neck pain.