Medical Reports: Texting

WSVN -- Sixteen-year-old Annie Levits says at one point she was sending four thousand text messages a month.

Annie Levits: "It's not even good texts, it's like, 'Hey, hey, what's up. what's up, not much.' Just ridiculous texting that I've learned to not do anymore."

But, soon she started having trouble with her hands.

Annie Levits: "I started, like, losing feeling in my hands and they'd go numb, and I'd be going to pick up dishes and things and they would just fall out of my hands."

Her mom suspected it might be all that texting, but didn't take her phone away.

Carrie Levits, Mother: "Sure, I've thought about it (taking her phone away.) If you had teenagers you would know that doesn't work. That's their whole social life. Plus, that's how you get in touch with them."

But, after seeing the doctor Annie was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome and was told to put down the phone.

Dr. Sofia Aksentijevich, Rheumatologist: "If you get tendentious in the shoulder or the wrist, and the doctor say don't do the activity, put it at rest, well, it's the same thing. You know, don't do the activity that's constantly causing the problem."

Doctors say more and more teens are being diagnosed with carpel tunnel syndrome. Annie is going to need surgery to fix hers, but the good news, she's down to 2,000 texts a month.