Prior to my surgery, I attempted to do research on my condition – Cubital Tunnel Syndrome so that I could be well informed on what to expect and to learn about the long-term prognosis after surgery. I was shocked to find there are many sites and message boards on Carpal Tunnel, but very few regarding Cubital Tunnel.

I receive several hits per month on “ulnar” or “cubital tunnel” so I figured I would provide an update to my fellow Internet friends who may be suffering from Cubital Tunnel and are considering surgery.

I must say, that making the decision to undergo the knife was difficult for me. I enjoy my mobility, but the pain and numbness were interfering with the quality of my life. I am not a vain person, but I do lift weights to keep my tricep area firm and prevent that unsightly fat jiggle when waving one or both arms.

Imagine my horror at my pre-op visit when my surgeon wielded a purple magic marker and proceeded to draw an eight inch line down the back of my arm! He said, “There…that ought to cover it. What do you think?” What did I think? I thought he was some bloodthirsty flesh mutilator!

As you will see from my before picture below, I had quite the FrankenArm for a few months. However, it is true…time does fade and heal all wounds.

Two days after my surgery, I found that my numbness and “funny bone” pain were gone. Now my surgeon did report that I was very lucky, as it can take some patients over a year for the nerve to heal. I never needed physical therapy, instead I did the arm exercises my doctor prescribed.

It took roughly six months for all the tenderness at the incision and in my tricep to go away. Around that same time, I found that my grip strength was almost normal and I could tolerate lifting more than 10lbs. Now at one year post-op, I am at 100%

I have both Cubital and Carpal on the right, and if it continues to get worse, I will have surgery next year after the baby is born. I plan on going to the same surgeon because of the brilliant job he did on putting me back together, but more importantly, I want my scars to match!

Here is what my arm looked like one day post-op:

And here it is one year later:

I certainly hope that if you are reading this you won’t have to undergo this type of ulnar surgery, but if you do, please have faith.

This active mom of many came through it for the better!

Looking for more information on Ulnar Transposition Surgery or Cubital Tunnel?

Please feel free to ask any questions in the comment section below or via my Contact page. I will try to answer as best I can

© Mom for Mom Coming Home, 2006. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cubital Tunnel, Ulnar Nerve, Ulnar Transposition Surgery

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