LYME DISEASE
Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi. B. burgdorferi is transmitted to humans by a bite from an infected black-legged or deer tick. The tick becomes infected after feeding on infected deer, birds, or mice.
Symptoms
Early signs and symptoms include fever, chills, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, and swollen lymph nodes . In up to 80% of Lyme infections, a rash is one of the first symptoms
- Severe headache or neck stiffness
- Rashes on other areas of the body
- Arthritis with severe joint pain and swelling, particularly in the knees
- Loss of muscle tone or “drooping” on one or both sides of the face.
- Heart palpitation or an irregular heartbeat
- Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord
- Shooting pains, numbness, or tingling in the hands or feet
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
It’s caused by pressure on your median nerve, which runs the length of the arm, goes through a passage in the wrist called the carpal tunnel, and ends in the hand.
It can happen due to:
- Repetitive motions, like typing or any motions of the wrist that you do over and over. This is especially true of actions when your hands are lower than your wrist.
- Conditions like hypothyroidism, obesity, rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes
- Pregnancy
Symptoms
Carpal tunnel syndrome causes discomfort in the hand and up into the forearm. You may feel a burning, tingling, or itching numbness in the palm of your hand and thumb, or index and middle fingers.
The first symptoms often appear during the night, or on waking up in the morning. Patients may feel the need to "shake out" their hands when they wake up. The discomfort may wake them repeatedly during the night.
The three main symptoms associated with CTS are:
- pain
- numbness
- tingling
These symptoms occur in the thumb and the two fingers next to it, as well as half of the ring finger. They may extend to the rest of the hand and into the forearm.