Right hand
Well I had my right hand operated on Wednesday 12th Sept. It was different in that I paid for this one to make sure I had the op when I wanted it with it being out of season for my vets tennis commitments and also giving me time to recover for my Xmas holiday. I felt more during this op. no pain but like short pin like feelings which the consultant said was him moving a nerve. The hand feels a lot stronger than my left was after the op and I am very hopeful that it will recover quicker. I am sleeping OK which is nice because the whole numbness cycle was starting again since the injection wore off. In my own situation the injection worked for a while to enable me to do the the things I needed to do at the time and delaying the inevitable op. Maybe the injection wore off quickly because I was playing a lot of intense tennis 3 times a week for at least 2 or 3 hours at a time. I am linesman tomorrow for a Welsh League soccer match and feel confident that I will be comfortable enough to do this which says a lot about the recovery time after surgery.
Hi Clive,
Good luck with your recovery, your case is following a different pattern to mine.
Both my hands are more or less "normal" today and I am going to try and play a few games of of competitive singles for the first time this afternoon. It is 18 months since I last did so it will be interesting ! (had to stop playing totally when heart problem diagnosed).
John
I had the same surgeon. I was happy with my first op. and so decided to go back to him. I was linesman yesterday and everything went well. Apart from soreness from the incision and a little weakness it feels almost normal.
Thanks John I hope your singles went well. I feel like playing now. My hand feels really good. Whether it is because it is my dominant hand and was stronger I don't know. I am going to rest it for a couple of weeks before I attempt tp play.
Excellent news, Clive. It sounds very promising.
My tennis went well and I have just agreed to play a match on the 10th October.
I think my hand will be ok but not sure about my fitness !
John
That's good news, fitness comes with playing more so I hope it all goes well for you. My hand is unbelievably good. I am going to the tennis club 500 yards away and I am going to try it on the practice wall with my racket and a sponge ball. Mainly to try and keep the strength in my forearm.
Different surgeon or the same one? It's not quite 'polite' to point it out but even for a relatively simple operation like carpal tunnel decompression there are obviously differences between surgeons in technique which translate into different experiences and outcomes for patients. They are rarely measured systematically. You are right that injection is very useful for adjusting the timing of surgery so that it can be done at a convenient time but I think it important to realise that surgery for CTS is not inevitable - in fact of all cases that initially present in primary care it may be the minority that eventually require surgery with a significant number resolving without any treatment at all. JB