After nine months of severe pain in her hands, arm and neck affecting every aspect of her life and work, numerous doctor visits and medicine that brought no results plus many sleepless nights, Beverly Sconfienza was at her wit’s end.

That is, until she met Dr. Thomas Barbour, a surgeon with The Orthopaedic Group in Mobile, who performed Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release surgery in October , 2010.

“Dr. Barbour is my hero and angel. This surgery completely and totally changed my life and produced 110 percent results for me. There is nothing I can’t do now. I’m actually able to sleep through the whole night and get back to working like I used to. I recommend it to anyone who has any problems with carpal tunnel issues,” Sconfienza said.

A Silverhill farmer, who cares for goats and other animals plus helps her husband, Mitch with his cabinet shop, Sconfienza said she started noticing her left hand and wrist going numb and tingling last January while she was talking on the phone and would be painful to lift things on the farm. Not really thinking about it and just “shaking it out” until it got better, Sconfienza went about her work and dealt with it.

“It was bothersome and annoying but I didn’t think it was a real problem until it started waking me up at night, at first once, then twice and three times. I sleep with my hand underneath my pillow and it would go numb. Over time it got progressively worse and I decided I should go to the doctor,” Sconfienza said.

By the time a doctors appointment was made in March, both hands and arm was affected and her family doctor suggested she get an CT scan, which showed some disk problems in her neck . Her doctor sent her to a neurosurgeon who suggested surgery to repair damaged disks.

“This surgery would have been pretty extensive, removing three disks im my neck, inserting a titanium plate and enduring a six week recovery period but I was in so much pain and only sleeping about 30 minutes a night by this time (July), I was willing to try anything,” Sconfienza said.

However, Mitch, wasn't so sure about the surgery and suggested she get a second opinion. Though doubtful and not really wanting to endure another doctor visit, Sconfienza agreed to go. A family friend suggested a doctor he knew that may could help and Sconfienza made another appointment with another doctor for August.

“I saw Dr.(Brent) Faircloth (neurosurgeon) and he looked at the ex-rays and did a thorough 40 minute exam. He told me he didn’t think the problem was my neck but the pressure from the nerve in my wrist that was causing the trouble and waking me up. He wanted to treat is a carpal tunnel syndrome and ordered two wrist splints for me to try for two weeks,” Sconfienza said.

Reluctantly, Sconfienza took Dr. Faircloth’s advice and wore the splints for two weeks. By that time, she was having to drive with her knees and was very limited in what she could lift and do. She noticed an immediate difference as the pain went away when her wrist was straightened. “I was amazed at that and thought maybe this will work.”

After a month of improvement with the splints, Sconfienza was referred to Dr. Barbour.

“Dr. Faircloth said he specialized in carpal tunnel surgery and thought I would be a good candidate for it. My first thought was ‘Oh no, not another doctor’ but I agreed and so glad I did,” Sconfienza said.

Her October 11 visit with Dr. Barbour went well and said her condition was bad enough to require surgery immediately and fortunately, no permanent nerve damage had been done so far. “He wanted to schedule surgery right away but only performed it on Mondays so we set it up for October 18. He said it was a good thing we caught it early.”

Done on an outpatient basis, this endoscopic surgery “uses a thin, flexible tube with a camera attached (endoscope). The endoscope is guided through a small incision in the wrist (single portal technique) and palm (two-portal technique) where it can see the ligaments. The small cutting tools are also inserted through the incision and the transverse carpal ligament is cut, releasing pressure on the median nerve that relieves the carpal tunnel symptoms,” according to the WebMD website.

The median nerve, running from the forearm into the hand, controls sensations to the palm side of the thumb and fingers and can become pressed or squeezed at the wrist. The carpal tunnel, a narrow, rigid passageway of ligament and bones at the base of the hand, houses the median nerve and tendons. If those tendons get irritated or swell up, the tunnel narrows and causes the median nerve to be compressed and cause pain, weakness, numbness in the hand and wrist and radiate up the arm.

“The surgery itself only lasted about 15 minutes. It’s not very complicated and I’ve been doing it for about 15 years so I’m really comfortable with it. I’ve done about 1,000 and most of them are done at the Mobile Surgery Center, Mobile Infirmary and Providence Hospital as an outpatient. They used to require a hospital stay but now they don’t.,” said Dr. Barbour.

Practicing at The Orthopaedic Group ( 25 doctors) in Mobile since 1995 and specializing in reconstructive and arthroscopic surgery of the elbow, wrist and hand, Dr. Barbour graduated from Spring Hill College with a B.S. in Biology and received his medical degree from The University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed his surgical residency at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and also did a fellowship residency in hand and microvascular surgery at Duke University School of Medicine.

“This surgery has proved successful for many people, mainly if it is treated early before any nerve damage is done. We can still do it if there is nerve damage and sometimes the nerves can heal themselves but it’s a slow process and sometimes it doesn’t happen. In Beverly’s case, the relief was immediate and brought life changing results,” Barbour said.

Using the latest technology, this surgery was developed by Houston, Tx. Dr. Michael Brown in the late 1980’s and has been widely accepted and acclaimed. Dr. Barbour is the only one in the area who does this type of surgery and explains it is generally intended for the more severe cases.

Sconfienza said she arrived for the surgery at 7:30 a.m. and was on the way home by 10:30 a.m. “I was feeling so good that I stopped for a milkshake on the way home and was home by 11 a.m. I felt immediate relief and slept like a baby the first night after surgery. I had no lasting effects and was a new person. I would tell anyone who has this kind of pain to go to the doctor and get it diagnosed early. Don’t wait as long as I did.”

Dr. Barbour did surgery on both wrists at one month intervals to let the first one heal before doing the second one and now Sconfienza is back to her old routines and said she doesn’t even think about the pain she once had.

“This was fixed so easily and I am so glad my husband told me to get a second opinion. I can hardly even see my scar either. I measured it and it’s only one half inch and three-quarters of an inch on each wrist. Dr. Barbour has the highest standard of care and his nurse, Rebecca, is incredible They are the most kind, considerate and knowledgeable doctors I have ever seen and I am very blessed. i can see God’s fingerprint all over this situation,” Sconfienza said.

According to WebMD, “70 percent of the patients having this surgery are satisfied with the results and 90 percent have no pain after surgery. The risk and complications rates are very low and major problems like nerve damage happen in fewer than one out of 100 surgeries (less than one percent).

Women are three times more likely than men to develop carpal tunnel syndrome because of the smallness of the tunnel in women and the dominant hand is affected first and produces the most severe pain. This problem is most common in those performing assembly line work (manufacturing, sewing, fishing, cleaning and meat, poultry or fish-packing, WebMD said.

For more information on Dr. Barbour or The Orthopaedic Group, contact (251) 476-5050 or (251) 450-2746 or (800) 242-1348 or visit www.orthogroup.com