What Is Cubital Tunnel Syndrome?
A sudden impact to the inside of your elbow can cause symptoms of pain and tingling that travel all the way down your arm into your fingers. People often describe this as hitting your “funny bone.” However, it is not a bone that is responsible for unpleasant sensations but the ulnar nerve. Extending from the side of your neck, the ulnar nerve travels across your shoulder, down through your arm, and into your hand. Also known as ulnar neuropathy, cubital tunnel syndrome results from compression of your ulnar nerve at your elbow.
It can be easy to confuse cubital tunnel syndrome with carpal tunnel syndrome. The names are similar, and each involves pressure on one of the nerves that provide feeling to the hand. Carpal tunnel syndrome is different in that the compression occurs at the wrist and affects the median nerve. Therefore, although the symptoms may be similar, carpal tunnel syndrome and cubital tunnel syndrome each affect different fingers.
