Causes of Tingling in the Hand

Tingling in the hands is a sign of nerve involvement somewhere. This involvement doesn't necessarily have to be located in the fingers or hand to produce these symptoms, although this is the case most of the time. Numbness and tingling in the hand(s) can be caused by a wide variety of factors.

Cervical Radiculopathy

• Cervical radiculopathy describes a condition in which pressure is placed upon the spinal nerves that exit the cervical (neck) spine at different levels. Since many of these nerves service the upper extremities, hands and fingers, undue pressure on them can cause alterations in sensation, namely numbness and tingling.

Cubital Tunnel Syndrome

• An area located on the inner portion of your elbow is affectionately known as the funny bone. If you've ever bumped this area, you know it isn't very funny. It isn't a bone, either. The area is where a nerve, called the ulnar nerve, passes by the elbow through a special groove, as it travels down the arm to provide sensation and motor function to the outer border of the hand, ring and little fingers.

  Pressure on this nerve, from repetitive overuse, injury or anatomical variations, can cause pain and tingling to the lateral hand, little finger and half of the ring finger. The common medical term for this condition is cubital tunnel syndrome, or ulnar nerve entrapment syndrome.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

• Another instance of nerve compression is carpal tunnel syndrome. This condition arises from pressure exerted upon a nerve, called the median nerve, that crosses the wrist on the palm side and provides sensation and function to the thumb, index and long fingers.

  Pressure can be caused by trauma such as wrist fractures, pregnancy or swelling of tissues in general, or repetitive overuse (production line workers). For mild forms of carpal tunnel syndrome, treatment can be conservative. But when the nerve is compressed severely enough, permanent damage can occur, so surgical release of the pressure is frequently required to lessen the likelihood of permanent damage.

Raynaud's Disease

• Raynaud's disease is more a condition than a disease. It involves constriction of the small arterial vessels in the hands and fingers as an abnormal response to cold temperatures, stress and anxiety. This constriction causes a whitish discoloration of the hands and fingertips.

Ganglion

• Ganglions are typically small cyst formations that can occur just about anywhere, but frequently involve tendon sheaths of the fingers and wrist. Tingling in the hand and fingers results from pressure on small branches of nerves by the cyst itself. As the cyst grows, more pressure is exerted

Other Causes

• The list of conditions and medical issues that can cause tingling in the hand is extensive, ranging from diabetes and alcoholism to Lyme's disease and stroke (mayoclinic.com).