Q. My hand falls asleep and gets numb waking me up at night. It sometimes also happens also when I work on the computer. My friends tell me this is “carpal tunnel syndrome”. Are they right?

A. Hand numbness can stem from a variety of sources. These include a pinched nerve in the cervical spine or neck region, circulatory problems or a variety of different pinched nerves in the arm. Carpal tunnel Syndrome is one of the most common entities and involves compression of the median nerve as it enters the hand through a tight tunnel in the wrist area. The numbness is usually in the thumb, index, long and part of the ring finger. Usually the small or pinky finger is not involved. Check with an orthopaedic or hand surgeon to see if your friends are right. It sounds like they might be.