Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Conditions
Keywords
manual therapy, carpal tunnel syndrome, central sensitization
Brief summary
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a manual therapy technique (neural mobilization) on measures of clinical pain and function, experimental pain sensitivity, and on the function of the median nerve in individuals with carpal tunnel syndrome. The investigators hypothesized that individuals receiving a neural mobilization technique known to directly stress the median nerve would demonstrate greater improvements in clinical pain and function, experimental pain sensitivity, and median nerve function than those receiving a sham technique.
Interventions
PROCEDUREneural mobilization
manual therapy technique known to directly stress the median nerve
PROCEDUREsham neural mobilization
sham technique mimicking the neural mobilization which is not specific to the median nerve
OTHERhealthy controls
People without carpal tunnel syndrome for comparison
Sponsors
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
University of Florida
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* 18 to 70 years of age * signs and symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome for greater than 12 weeks
Exclusion criteria
* non english speaking * prior surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome * systemic condition known to affect sensation * chronic pain condition other than carpal tunnel syndrome
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| thermal and pressure pain sensitivity | immediate effect |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| grip strength | 3 weeks |
| wrist range of motion | 3 weeks |
| clinical pain | 3 weeks |
| self report of disability | 3 weeks |
| median nerve function | 3 weeks |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed