Carpal Tunnel Disability Lawyer in California

Is Carpal Tunnel A Disability?

Many people experience carpal tunnel syndrome, a common condition. If you experience pain, tingling, and numbness in one or both hands and wrists, see a doctor for an examination to determine if it’s carpal tunnel syndrome.

The pain and impaired use of your hands, wrist, and fingers can become bad enough to impair your ability to work. If the carpal tunnel work limitations are so severe as to prevent you from working, including doing the kinds of work you did in the past or other types of work, you may be eligible for disability benefits through the Social Security Administration.

The Northern California disability lawyers at Sackett Law have helped people with all types of disabilities qualify for Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance benefits for over 45 years. From the initial application to appeals, Sackett Law is a trusted name that people turn to for advice and results-oriented representation.

What Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

The carpal tunnel is a space in the wrist bones that allows tendons, nerves, and ligaments to pass through to your hands. One of the nerves passing through the carpal tunnel is the median nerve, which is responsible for the ability of your hands and fingers to function properly.

When the median nerve is damaged or irritated, it presses against the carpal tunnel’s walls, which causes pain, numbness, and tingling in the affected hand and fingers. If left untreated, carpal tunnel syndrome may permanently damage the median nerve.

How To Know If What You Have Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

Severe carpal tunnel syndrome may prevent you from being able to perform work-related activities that require the use of your arms, hands, and fingers. It’s better to arrange for an examination by a physician at the first sign of symptoms than to try to diagnose the condition yourself.

Common symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include pain, tingling, and numbness in your wrist, hands, and fingers. The numbness may be especially pronounced in your fingertips.

Self-diagnosis may result in permanent nerve damage by delaying treatment because you believe your symptoms are a sign of another condition. Conditions with symptoms that can mimic carpal tunnel syndrome include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Arthritis
2. Tendonitis
3. Neuropathy
4. Pinched nerves

A physician or other qualified healthcare provider can distinguish the difference between carpal tunnel syndrome and other conditions with similar symptoms through a physical examination and diagnostic tests that may include:

1. MRIs
2. X-rays
3. Electromyography or EMG
4. Ultrasound

A doctor may tap the surface of your skin over the nerve and ask if you had a tingling sensation, or Tinel’s sign. A Phalen’s test, where the doctor asks you to move your wrists and hands into positions that put pressure on the median nerve, causes numbing or tingling if you have carpal tunnel syndrome.

Risk factors that contribute to developing carpal tunnel syndrome include people who use vibrating tools, such as drills and jackhammers, and repetitive motion using your hands and wrists, such as carpenters who swing a hammer all day or someone working at a computer keyboard. Heredity, age, and medical conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, gout, diabetes, and obesity, can contribute to someone developing carpal tunnel syndrome.

Can You Qualify For Disability Benefits For Carpal Tunnel?

The Social Security listing of impairments, commonly referred to as the “Blue Book,” that disability examiners use to determine if you are eligible for SSI or SSDI does not have a listing for carpal tunnel syndrome, but that does not mean you do not qualify for benefits. Yes, it’s easier to prove that you are disabled if your condition matches one in the listings, but you can qualify with a condition that is functionally equivalent to a listed impairment.

Conditions, such as inflammatory arthritis and peripheral neuropathy, that mimic your condition are listed in the Blue Book. You may qualify for disability benefits for carpal tunnel using one of them as functionally equivalent conditions.

Contact A Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Disability Lawyer

The disability professionals at Sackett Law devote their practice to helping people with disabilities in Northern California and throughout the country obtain disability benefits through the Social Security Administration. If you suffer from hand and wrist pain and other symptoms that a doctor diagnosed as carpal tunnel syndrome, contact us today for a free consultation. Learn from a Sackett Law disability lawyer about carpal tunnel as a qualifying disability, and let us help you with an application or appeal.