Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Disability Insurance Benefits Claim
View Disability Cases Involving Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Disability Insurance Benefits Claim
Disability carriers often challenge carpal tunnel syndrome as a disabling condition. How can Disability Insurance Attorneys Dell & Schaefer assist you?
As disability insurance attorneys, Dell & Schaefer have represented numerous long term disability claimants that have been unable to work as a result of being diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. Disability Attorneys Dell & Schaefer have an expansive understanding of the significant restrictions and limitations that a person with carpal tunnel syndrome must live with on a daily basis. We have worked closely with top physicians in order to sufficiently satisfy a disability carrier’s threshold of evidence necessary to prove that a client is disabled by carpal tunnel syndrome.
Not everyone suffering with carpal tunnel syndrome qualifies for long-term disability benefits, therefore the medicals records of each client must be reviewed to determine the level of restrictions.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss your long-term disability claim.
You can contact us for a free initial consultation.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is fairly common and therefore some disability carriers will go as far as telling a disability claimant that they should undergo surgery in order to alleviate their pain and resulting disability. While the majority of courts cases have ruled that a claimant is not required to submit for a surgery, disability carriers continue to argue that a claimant is not complying with the appropriate care provision if they don’t submit for a carpal tunnel surgery. A survey of 400 American hand surgeons reported that each surgeon performed an average of 65 operations for carpal tunnel syndrome per year. Carpal tunnel syndrome is more common in females. The estimated lifetime risk of developing this syndrome is about 10% of adults.
What is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Although it might seem that the most common cause of carpal tunnel syndrome is long hours spent working on a computer keyboard, carpal tunnel syndrome actually has numerous causes.
Bound by bones and ligaments, the carpal tunnel is a narrow passageway, only about as big around as your thumb, located on the palm side of your wrist. This tunnel protects a main nerve to your hand and nine tendons that bend your fingers. Pressure placed on the nerve produces the numbness, pain and, eventually, hand weakness that characterize carpal tunnel syndrome.
Other conditions can cause carpal tunnel syndrome including rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, thyroid disorders, menopause, fluid retention due to pregnancy, or deposits of amyloid, an abnormal protein produced by cells in your bone marrow.
Repetitive flexing and extending of the tendons in the hands and wrists, particularly when done forcefully and for prolonged periods without rest, also can increase pressure within the carpal tunnel. Injury to your wrist can cause swelling that exerts pressure on the median nerve or it may be that your carpal tunnel is more narrow than average.
How the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome can affect you
Carpal tunnel syndrome typically starts gradually with a vague aching in your wrist that can extend to your hand or forearm. Other common carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms include: tingling or numbness, pain radiating and extending, a sense of weakness in your hands.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is particularly associated with certain tasks including:
- repetitive hand motions
- awkward hand positions
- strong gripping
- mechanical stress on the palm
- vibration
These symptoms can affect every aspect of daily life for a person suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome both physically and emotionally. Those who suffer from the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, find performing even simple tasks can be a painful and debilitating experience. Carpal tunnel pain can literally stop you from performing any task that requires use of your hands, including gripping or lifting objects, typing on a keyboard or any other manual activity.
How can carpal tunnel syndrome be properly documented?
People who suspect carpal tunnel syndrome often consult a doctor. The evaluation of occupational carpal tunnel syndrome includes identifying workplace risks. Evaluation begins with a discussion of the person’s employment and requires a detailed description of all the processes involved in a typical day’s work. It also requires consideration of the frequency, intensity, duration and regularity of each task performed at work. Diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome is confirmed by performing certain tests to detect damage to the median nerve.
- Tinel’s test – The physician taps the median nerve at the wrist. A tingling response in one or more fingers indicates damage to the median nerve.
- Phalen’s test – The patient puts the backs of the hands together and bends the wrists for one minute. Tingling of the fingers indicates damage to the median nerve.
- Electromyography – Electrodes are placed on the forearm and electrical current is passed through the patient. Measurements on how fast and how well the median nerve transmits messages to muscles indicate if there is damage to this nerve.
How common is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Although we do not have reliable estimates of the number of cases of carpal tunnel syndrome, studies of specific occupations increasingly show that the disorder is fairly common. For example:
- 614 out of 982 supermarket checkers surveyed reported symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome;
- In one electronic manufacturing plant with 700 employees, a review of workers’ compensation claims revealed a total of 52 cases of carpal tunnel syndrome over a five-year period;
- Out of a group of 788 meat handlers, 117 had surgical treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome over a twelve-year period;
- A survey of 400 American hand surgeons reported that each surgeon performed an average of 65 operations for carpal tunnel syndrome per year;
- Carpal tunnel syndrome is more common in females.
The estimated lifetime risk of developing this syndrome is about 10% of adults.
Resources
There are many valuable sources of carpal tunnel syndrome information available. You can also access resources over the internet such as:
Not everyone suffering with carpal tunnel syndrome qualifies for long-term disability benefits, therefore the medicals records of each client must be reviewed to determine the level of restrictions.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss your long-term disability claim.
You can contact us for a free initial consultation.
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We respond the same day. We represent disability insurance claimants all over the United States.
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Disability benefits cases involving Carpal Tunnel Syndrome:
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