an idea of what to possibly expect

[nauticalgurl1]

I am in Ohio. Currently waiting on a hearing date. The insurance carrier for my employer has rejected my claim pending a second opinion by another physician pertaining to my carpal tunnel. I've been to 3 doctors on my own...gone thru the physical examinations, had an EMG (it was positive for carpal tunnel), had an NCV (it was positive for carpal tunnel) and am wondering is there another test or something I'm missing here as far as diagnois?

[jayne]

nope just normal WC bull kaka deny deny deny....

[sparkey]

Have you ever had the surgery in your injured hand that is positive for carpal tunnel? I had the surgery in my dominant hand 10 yrs. ago and now i have recurring carpal/neuropathy and no doctor will repeat it. I have been to almost 10 doctors and left to live with this and go to pain management.

If you tested positive and have not had the surgery in that hand before,you should be able to have the surgery.Have you been sent to a orthopedic surgeon? They will do injections, therapy, before they consider the surgery.

[nauticalgurl1]

Hi Sparkey, Thanks for the response. I tested positive in both hands for severe bilateral carpal tunnel. The doctor told me in my case that I was not going to get any better with PT. I was put on restrictions when I was first seen at the hospital by the treating doctor. Went back to work that day with the restrictions and was sent home by employer. They have no "light duty with restrictions work". There's not a whole lot you can do without the use of both hands and though I'm home I'm doing very little and they still hurt. So, the doctor said surgery. My employer rejected my claim pending examination by another doctor of their choosing. I was just wondering if he'd be doing the same thing as the other doctors have done or would he prescribe PT before saying that surgery was my only option. Surgery is what we've been trying to get approval for. I don't know why it's so hard to get it from the employer. My physician is an orthopedic surgeon.

[katicabogar]

I had several surgeries on both hands for carpal tunnel/tendonytis and thumb triggering on both hands between 2005 and 2006. I can tell you, I had to try several cortizone shots first and also physical therapy before w/c approved surgeries. My surgeon knew how w/c worked, so he tried these first. I also had to go back to the same type of work wearing the bracelets and worked while going through physical therapy and also between surgeries.
For some reason, nobody takes carpal tunnel seriously and w/c thinks after a week's rest, you are fine.
Also, just as Sparkey said, even after surgery, you may have the same problems as before or even more if you keep doing the same type of work. I know I do.

Good luck.
Kat

[Bad Boy Bad Boy]

Nauticalgurl1

I see no problem as for your job class to say no to Carpal Tunnel. As for your employer, they have the right to have you seen by a Doctor of their choice, for a medical opinion. It sounds like that just might go well from your prior testing. The employers doctor mostly will review those test, and exam you, then make their report.

Your date of injury wasn't listed?

[Still in Limbo]

Hi and Welcome to the Forum!! Having the i/c Send You to another Dr. as the others have said is their Right, as they are the Ones who will be Paying for the Surgery. And unless the w/c Judge Rules in Your Favor to have the Surgery, You May have to try other Alternative Treatments if the w/c Dr. feels they are Necessary. You have Pretty Strong Evidence on Your Side, so Hopefully You won't have to Follow that Route! You May want to Start Documenting All of Your Conversations with the Dr.'s, w/c if You are in Contact with them, and the Nurse Case Manager if You have One. And You can Legally ask the NCM to stay out of the Exam Room when You are in there, You have the Right to Privacy! I didn't Notice You Posting if You have an Attorney or not, but Your Case is getting a bit Sticky, so if You don't have One, You May want to Consider Speaking to a Few, the First Consultation is Usually Free. I Wish You the Very Best, and Again Welcome!!

[nauticalgurl1]

I understand about them being entitled to another doctor's opinion...I have no problem with that. What I was getting at was would they do another EMG and NCV. I've heard that sometimes those can be interpreted incorrectly. Or maybe they'll say that based on their examination they couldn't find anything wrong with me.... After reading what Sparkey went through I'm half scared to death. I'm with you on the NCM though if I have one I probably won't know it till the day of the exam, you think? Went to Orthopedic surgeon this morning....we went over the same stuff...what's numb, what hurts, range of motion, any concerns that I may have....I'm not the type of person to sit at home doing nothing and am starting to go stir crazy. I almost asked him to change my restrictions to see if I could handle maybe going back to work but I know my hands wouldn't last an hour at my job and my employer would probably want to fire me for one reason or another. Doc didn't think it was too good of an idea either. I was diagnosed in April 2008.

[Bad Boy Bad Boy]

In general, an IME Doctor does not perform medical test. The IME doctor only reviews your prior medical records, X-rays, MRI's, and EMG test, then simply makes a medical opinion. IME Doctor's can request, or reccomend to the Insurance Carriers Adjustor you get certain test performed, but that is mostly about as far as that goes.

As for the NCM, who knows, you may see one, you may never see one, just like flipping a coin there.

[nauticalgurl1]

What if I tried going back to work with different restrictions? Would it hurt my claim? If I couldn't handle the work then I could go back to my treating doctor and let him know, right? Or is it still up to my employer whether they have work for me with restrictions? I'd imagine my weight restrictions wouldn't come up much so I'd probably be a bad candidate at this time for going back to work....not to mention that my grip isn't what it used to be. It was a dumb idea to begin with....don't mind me...just thinking out loud