Liquid treatment could help relieve carpal tunnel pain, researchers find

BOSTON - Millions of Americans suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome but a new procedure could help relieve the pain.

Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when a nerve in the wrist becomes trapped, causing pain in the wrist and difficulty using the hand.

Current treatments involve wearing wrist splints, and steroid injections, and some patients require surgery. 

But researchers in India say a technique called hydrodissection may help. Using ultrasound guidance, a provider injects a liquid into the nerve in the wrist to separate it from the surrounding tissue. 

In a study of 63 participants, they found that hydrodissection with simple saline or salt water provided longer-lasting pain relief than a traditional steroid injection. 

This was a small study so the technique will need to be tested on many more patients before it becomes widely available.

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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