Carpal tunnel affects about 250,000 women and men each year in the USA. A common question most patients ask is if carpal tunnel syndrome will go away by itself or with conservative treatment.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is an abnormal condition of the median nerve (called a neuropathy) inside your wrist joint. This nerve provides motor function and sensation to your thumb and three middle fingers (but not your little finger).

Carpal tunnel syndrome is one of the most common hand disorders, which women get at least three times more often than men. Without proper care, it usually progresses and becomes worse.

The primary symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include:

• Numbness
• Pain
• Tingling
• Shooting electric shocks
• Burning
• Weakness
• Clumsiness

When the disorder begins, symptoms usually appear only at night. But as it progresses, symptoms also appear during the daytime. Using your hands becomes difficult because symptoms usually worsen with more hand activity.

Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the median nerve (inside your wrist joint) is compressed. The compression comes from swollen and inflamed tissues right next to the nerve. The tissues most likely to inflame and swell are your flexor tendons. These tendons lie right next to the median nerve and are responsible for curling your fingers.

Certain factors are known to trigger flexor tendon inflammation, such as overuse or your hands, repetitive motion of your fingers and hand, a wrist fracture, and even a poor sitting posture. But compression can also occur from inflammation as a result of a metabolic disturbance, such as during pregnancy.

In some cases, genetics determines if you are born with a carpal tunnel space (inside you wrist) that is smaller than average. That's why carpal tunnel syndrome runs in families. The smaller space cramps the median nerve, and increases the chances that even minor swelling can compress the median nerve.

Other problems or health conditions can cause inflammation and increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome. These are listed below.

The most common problems or health conditions which put you at risk for developing carpal tunnel syndrome are:

• Poor sitting posture
• Harmful hand activities
• Pregnancy
• Diabetes
• Emotional stress
• Obesity
• Hypothyroidism
• Inflammatory illnesses (gout, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus)

You can reduce the potential for developing carpal tunnel syndrome by taking preventive measures. For instance, avoid stressful hand activities like forceful, repetitive actions. If you must strain your hands on the job, take frequent rest  breaks to stretch your fingers and hand. Use gloves and ergonomic tools at work, especially when using vibrating equipment.

Seemingly innocent things like the ergonomic position of your hand and wrist while at a computer can cause enormous stresses on your hand. A proper sitting position can make the difference between comfort and chronic hand pain.

Unfortunately, in some cases developing carpal tunnel symptoms is unavoidable. And in many cases, the reasons for developing the disorder are unknown.

The short answer to "can carpal tunnel syndrome go away by itself" is No. That's especially true if the underlying cause (like hand strain) is not addressed or if nerve damage has progressed too far.

However, carpal tunnel syndrome can be successfully resolved with certain non-surgical treatments. This usually is the case when you have Mild  or Moderate  forms of the disorder. (Test your severity here.)

In these less severe instances, you can reduce pressure on the median nerve (and the subsequent inflammation) with one or more of the following remedies:

• Rest
• Activity avoidance
• Night bracing

These remedies are able to restore your tissues to normal only when you have Mild  or Moderate  symptoms. But with Severe   forms of carpal tunnel, you will require those remedies PLUS the more aggressive, non-surgical treatments listed below.

Sometimes carpal tunnel syndrome is due to an anatomical issue or it has progressed to nerve damage. Then, the chances for getting good resolution with non-surgical treatments decreases.

Many people see good remission of symptoms and then restart their usual (vigorous) hand activity too soon. As a result, symptoms quickly return. That's because your tissues have not fully healed, resulting in further damage.

A diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome usually is made by a physical exam. The doctor uses percussion tests to determine if symptoms can appear. (You can perform the same tests on yourself here.) Sometimes nerve testing is also used to confirm the physical exam.

The first and most crucial step to relieve carpal tunnel symptoms is to address the underlying problem. In some people, it means changing their hand and wrist position while typing or using tools. In others, simply wearing gloves or avoiding a marathon hand activity (like shoveling snow) is effective.

Yet in other people, the problem may be due to an underlying medical condition such as rheumatoid arthritis or pregnancy. Obviously, these are addressed differently. But in summary, any remedy is useless if you do not address the underlying issue.

If you have Severe symptoms, other well-known and aggressive treatments include:

• Myofascial release massage
• Corticosteroid injection
• Median neve hydrodissection
• Stretching exercises
• Behavioral modification

Each of these treatments can address different aspects of the condition and help to relieve pressure on the nerve. Most often, more than one of these treatments is needed to relieve Severe symptoms. You can also consider dietary interventions that help reduce inflammation in your body, such as reducing your seed oil or sugar intake.

Carpal tunnel syndrome usually will not go away by itself. However, if you have Mild or Moderate symptoms, there are good, non-surgical remedies which work very well in relieving symptoms. However, more Severe symptoms will most likely require more aggressive non-surgical treatments or a combination of them.