The effects of manual therapy on hand symptomes and median nerve tensionin in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome

Nerve mobilization is a relatively new approach in manual therapy whose efficacy and the most effective method of use are not clear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of manual therapy on severity of hand symptoms and median nerve tension in patiens with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS).
In the current RCT study, 32 patients with CTS were assigned into two groups of treatment and control. In both groups, the patients received the routine physiotherapy including the rest splint, TENS, and therapeutic ultrasound for four weeks. In addition to the routine physiotherapy, the patients in the treatment group received the manual therapy for both nerve mobilization and mechanical interface structures. The severity of hand symptoms (pain and tingling) and median nerve tension were assessed at the baseline and after four weeks using visual analogue scale and, median neurodynamic test, respectively. Paired and independent t-tests were run to compare data within and between the two groups. The significance level was set at p There was a significant improvement in the severity of hand symptoms and median nerve tension in both groups at the end of the study compared to baseline values (p Using manual therapy for nerve mobilization and mechanical interface structures, accompanied by physiotherapy modalities, leads to more improvement in hand sensory discomfort and median nerve tension in patients with carpal tunnel syndromes.