Government and public statistics
Prevalence and work-relatedness of carpal tunnel syndrome in the working population, United States, 2010
NIOSH, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (CDC Stacks), 2013
Read the originalRead on October 19, 2026
- What it is
- A NIOSH analysis of the occupational health supplement to the 2010 National Health Interview Survey. It estimates how many current and recent US workers had clinician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome, over 12 months and over a lifetime, from 17,524 workers in a sample of 27,157 adults.
- How much weight it carries
- Official federal occupational health agency, based on a national household survey. Prevalence is self-reported with clinician diagnosis, and the figures describe current and recent workers only, so they are not a rate for all adults. The survey measures a condition that was diagnosed, not the cause of the symptoms.
Facts taken from this source
- In the 2010 National Health Interview Survey, the 12-month prevalence of clinician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome among current or recent US workers was 3.1 percent, about 4.8 million workers.
“The 12-month prevalence was 3.1%, representing approximately 4.8 million workers with current CTS” (Abstract)
- In the 2010 National Health Interview Survey, the lifetime prevalence of clinician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome among current or recent US workers was 6.7 percent.
“The overall lifetime prevalence of clinician-diagnosed CTS among current/recent workers was 6.7%” (Abstract)