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I had carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands and was operated on a couple of years ago. One hand was ok but the other one developed into a very painful disorder called CRPS. Why did that happen?

CRPS, complex regional pain syndrome, is a painful syndrome that is not yet understood by the medical community. It is brought on by some sort of trauma, such as a break or surgery. The problem lies with doctors not being able to tell who will develop CRPS and who won't.

If you have to have the surgery again, there is some research that has found that some patients may be identified as at risk for CRPS through different types of testing. If you are concerned about this happening again, speak with your doctor about your concerns and to see what you can do about them.

Reference: 

William E. Ackerman, III, MD and Mahmood Ahmad, MD. Recurrent Postoperative CRPS I in Patients With Abnormal Preoperative Sympathetic Function. In American Journal of Hand Surgery. Feb. 2008. Vol. 33A, Pp. 217-221.

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