Carpal Tunnel Release Failure

Beginning in late 2020 or early 2021 I began to experience my fingers becoming numb at night. I never had any pain, only numbness and never doing the daytime.

My primary physician indicated that it could be CTS and referred me to a neurologist who performed a nerve conduction survey. The neurologist stated that it was CTS in both hands, the left being worse than the right, and recommended surgery.

Endoscopic CTR surgery on my left hand was performed as an outpatient in late January 2023. I returned the day after surgery to have the bandage changed. There was a significant hematoma leading down from my wrist for a distance of about 10 cm. The surgeon blamed it on my Eliquis blood thinning medication but I told him I had stopped it the required two days before the surgery.

The following day I experienced pain in the superficial anterior forearm muscles of my left arm that was so severe that I thought I would pass out. It was similar in intensity to when I had a ruptured disc many years ago. One doesn't forget that type of pain. It would continue for about 20 minutes and then slowly subside to only mild pain. It continued in this ebb and flow for the next week. No pain medication helped. It would also occur at night. The surgeon prescribed Lyrica which helped somewhat. It took several weeks for the pain to finally disappear.

After the pain had stopped I was able to use my hand for light tasks but I had persistent paresthesia in my thumb, forefinger and middle finger. The surgeon recommended a second visit to the neurologist. He performed a cervical examination which apparently didn’t yield any answers. He did another nerve conduction survey and said that the result was worse than the first test and told me that I must have another surgery. Delaying it would result in permanent nerve damage.

The surgeon told me that he would have to perform open surgery this time but was reluctant because the scar tissue from the first surgery is still going through the remodeling phase and it is very dangerous for him to operate during this time.

This has left me in a quandary. The paresthesia continues, but I have no pain in my fingers or wrist. Should I risk a surgery at this time? What if delaying it causes permanent nerve damage? There is no question that the nerve is being compressed but what if it is due to another cause? Should I have my right hand done now to avoid nerve damage in it?

If anyone has had a similar experience I would appreciate knowing what decisions you made.