The carpal tunnel is a narrow space in the wrist that houses the median nerve, tons of blood vessels, all the tendons that move the fingers and bursa saks containing fluid that can swell. As Mayo Clinic points out “anything that crowds, irritates or compresses the median nerve in the carpal tunnel space can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome.”
Chronic typing, texting or anything that creates a narrowing of the space in the wrist between the thumb and pinky side of the hand can create carpal tunnel syndrome. Cashiers, painters, hairdressers, builders and office workers all are at risk for this syndrome.
Look at your own wrist now and note how small of a space the carpal tunnel actually is. If it gets even a little bit swollen from overuse the meridian nerve can experience compression. When nerves are compressed they are painful.
To best assist students with carpal tunnel pain do non-weight baring stretching of the area by pulling the fingers back towards the elbow until a stretch is felt in the front of the forearm. While Chataranga Dondasana does place the hand in this open position, it is counter-indicated because its weight baring nature puts more pressure on the meridian nerve and increases pain.