The carpal tunnel is a narrow passageway of ligament and bones at the base of the palm of your hand that contains blood vessels, nerves and tendons. Sometimes, thickening from irritated tendons or other swelling narrows the tunnel and causes the nerve to be compressed. This is called carpal tunnel syndrome, or median nerve entrapment.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is the most common nerve compression disorder of the upper extremities of the body. In fact, this type of nerve entrapment affects 1 percent of the general population and 5 percent of the working population who must undergo repetitive use of their hands and wrists in daily living.