Numbness in one or both hands describes a loss of feeling in the hands or fingers. Numbness in hands often occurs with other changes, such as a pins-and-needles feeling, burning or tingling. Your arm, hand or fingers may feel clumsy or weak.

Numbness can occur along a single nerve in one hand or in both hands.

Causes

Hand numbness can be caused by damage, irritation, or compression of a nerve or a branch of a nerve in your arm and wrist.

Diseases affecting the peripheral nerves, such as diabetes, also can cause numbness. However, diabetes usually causes numbness in the feet first.

Uncommonly, numbness may be caused by problems in your brain or spinal cord. When this happens, arm or hand weakness or loss of function also occurs. Numbness alone isn’t usually associated with potentially dangerous disorders, such as strokes or tumors.

Your doctor needs detailed information about your symptoms to diagnose the cause of numbness. A variety of tests may be needed to confirm the cause before treatment can begin.

Possible causes of numbness in one or both of your hands include:

Brain and nervous system conditions
Cervical spondylosis
Guillain-Barre syndrome
Paraneoplastic syndromes of the nervous system
Peripheral neuropathy
Spinal cord injury
Stroke
Trauma or overuse injuries
Brachial plexus injury
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Cubital tunnel syndrome
Frostbite
Chronic conditions
Alcohol use disorder
Amyloidosis
Diabetes
Multiple sclerosis
Raynaud’s disease
Sjogren’s syndrome
Infectious diseases
Lyme disease
Syphilis
Treatment side effects
Chemotherapy or HIV drugs
Other causes
Ganglion cyst
Vasculitis
Vitamin B-12 deficiency

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