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Pain may occur in the right or left wrist. It can indicate various diseases of the joints. Every day, there are enormous loads on the wrist. This negatively affects the condition of the ligaments and muscles.
Sometimes the pain is provoked by mechanical damage. After reducing the load on the wrist, it decreases. However, sometimes the pain does not go away. If they persist for a long time, then you need to consult a doctor and undergo an examination.
Causes of wrist pain
There are many reasons that can lead to wrist pain. They are divided into two large groups: physiological and pathological.
Physiological
Often, pain in the wrist occurs for reasons that do not have a pathological basis.
These include:
Holding the wrist in an uncomfortable position for too long.
Hereditary weakness of the ligaments of the hand.
Prolonged alcohol abuse.
Taking drugs without medical supervision. In this regard, drugs for the treatment of epilepsy are especially dangerous.
Keyboard work.
Features of professional activity. At risk are crane operators, drivers, carpenters, mechanics and builders interacting with jackhammers.
Certain sports: tennis, golf, barbell exercises, rowing.
carpal tunnel syndrome. It often occurs in pregnant women. This happens in the 2nd and 3rd trimester. The reason for its development is a rapid weight gain. The syndrome manifests itself with symptoms such as: pain, numbness of the hand. Pain is especially intense during night rest.
Pathological
Pathological causes that can lead to wrist pain include:
Tumors located on the arm.
Received injuries. Pain occurs due to a dislocation, fracture, bruise, tear or sprain. In the area of damage, edema is formed, hematomas appear. All this increases pain.
Arthritis. Joints can be affected for various reasons. These include infectious factors, as well as aseptic inflammation. Arthritis is one of the most common causes of wrist pain.
Arthrosis. This disorder can occur after an injury to the joints. Pain appears during exercise. It is absent at rest.
Tenosynovitis or de Quervain’s disease. This pathology develops in people who often perform the same type of joint movement. Pain occurs when the brush is abducted. It radiates to the thumb and elbow.
tunnel syndrome. It develops against the background of wear of the tendons, as well as inflammation of the nerve fibers. People who work at a computer often suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome.
Tendinitis. The disease occurs against the background of excessive stress on the wrist. Professional athletes often suffer from tendinitis.
Gout. With this disease, an excessive amount of uric acid salts or calcium accumulates in the joints. Exacerbation of the pathology is accompanied by intense pain, burning sensation, pulsation in the affected area.
Osteoarthritis. The pathology most often affects people aged 40-60 years. The disease is characterized by the destruction of bone tissue. Moreover, it can suffer anywhere, and not only in the area of the metacarpophalangeal joint.
Nodular erythema. With this disease, adipose tissue becomes inflamed. Tumor-like neoplasms form in the affected area. The skin over them turns red, when touched they respond with pain.
Brucellosis, gonorrhea and other diseases of an infectious nature.
Tuberculosis of joints and bones. This disease rarely develops. It predominantly affects the elderly. Most often, the spine is affected, which experiences excessive loads. However, bone tissue can be damaged anywhere on the body.
Peyronie’s disease. A person has pain in the wrist. Only men suffer from this disease.
IHD and myocardial infarction.
Curly thumb.
Ganglion or hygroma. With this violation, tubercles form under the skin. They will contain a liquid that has a jelly-like consistency.
Kienböck’s disease.
Diseases of the spine. Many of them lead to compression of the roots and spinal nerves. It causes pain in certain areas of the body.
Volkman contracture. With this violation, the patient has obstruction of the ulnar artery.
By the place of concentration of pain, one can determine the development of a particular pathology.
Often, pain in the wrist can be due to disorders such as:
Damage to the central nervous system.
Spine diseases.
Rheumatoid arthritis or arthrosis.
Cracks in the bone, or damage to the ligaments.
Symptoms and possible illnesses
Wrist pain is the main symptom that will always be present. A person may also have other signs of a disorder. They depend on the specific disease that provoked carpal pain.
Common symptoms include:
Numbness in palm and hand.
Ants crawling.
Burning and itching in the affected area.
Trembling of the fingers, tingling in the fingers.
Increased pain at night, after intense physical exertion.
Crunch in the characteristic area.
Weakness of the fingers when trying to pick up an object.
Limitation of brush movements.
Swelling in the fingers and palms. It can occur on one or both limbs.
Specific symptoms
Specific symptoms of wrist pain include:
General deterioration of well-being.
Hyperemia of the tissues of the hand. Redness often appears after an injury.
Anatomically incorrect position of the limb (after a fracture). Joint instability (after dislocation).
Hemorrhages under the skin (after an open fracture).
Pain during limb flexion.
Joint deformity.
Inability to perform any action with the affected hand.
Shortness of breath, pain in the chest and in the region of the heart.
Burning, itching, tingling of the limb.
Hyperemia of the skin, which is located above the affected area.
Increased body temperature.
Weak muscles.
These symptoms are more common than others. They can accompany acute and chronic wrist pain. The exact clinical manifestations depend on the specific pathology that caused the pain syndrome.
When is it necessary to see a doctor?
A doctor should be contacted immediately if a person develops symptoms such as:
Loss of sensation in the fingers.
Painful sensations persist for several days.
After a load on the arm, the pain becomes stronger.
The wrist is deformed.
Edema or induration forms in the affected area.
The person cannot move the limb.
The pain becomes stronger during the movement of the hand.
When you try to move the brush, you hear a crunch and creak.
Which doctors should I contact if my wrist hurts?
To find out the cause of wrist pain, you need to contact specialists such as:
Therapist
Traumatologist. A doctor should be visited after an injury, regardless of its origin. If there is no way to get to a traumatologist, then you need to go to an appointment with a surgeon.
Orthopedist. A doctor is consulted when, in addition to pain in the wrist, a person notices swelling in a characteristic area, and when moving, a creak and crunch is heard. Pain may also join during the movement of the thumb and forefinger. These symptoms point to peritendinitis.
Rheumatologist. Symptoms that should make a person turn to this specialist: paroxysmal pain (they can last from several hours to several days), redness in the joint area, local fever. When the joint becomes deformed after the pain is over, gout or pseudogout may be suspected. Other signs may indicate a systemic disease: rashes on the skin and mucous membranes, a burning sensation during emptying of the bladder, fever up to 37,5 ° C, chills, headaches, weakness, sweating during sleep. Also, these symptoms are characteristic of infectious arthritis. It can be caused by gonorrhea, tuberculosis, brucellosis.
Neuropathologist. This doctor will help a patient with carpal tunnel syndrome. It often develops in pregnant women, in people who work at a computer. The development of this pathology is indicated by such symptoms as: pain, burning and itching in the wrist, trembling in the fingers (all fingers suffer, except for the little finger). It is difficult for a person to hold an object in the palm of his hand. The hand may swell, often there is numbness in the forearm. The brush becomes cold, skin sensitivity worsens.
If it is difficult for a person to understand which doctor he needs to contact, then first you should visit a therapist.
Diagnostics
After contacting the doctor, the patient will have to undergo such diagnostic procedures as:
History taking. The patient should describe the symptoms that disturb him as accurately as possible. It is important to clarify the location of pain, their nature, area of distribution. If you have previously been injured, you should report this to a specialist.
physical examination. The doctor will examine the affected area, evaluate the presence of edema, deformities, hematomas, bone displacement, inflammation.
Donating blood for clinical and biochemical analysis. This will allow you to assess the severity of inflammation.
Joint ultrasound. it the study allows you to diagnose synovitis, arthritis, tendonitis.
X-ray of the joint. With its help, dislocations, fractures, inflammatory processes, synovitis, carpal syndrome are detected.
Arthroscopy. A microscopic camera is inserted into the joint, as well as tools to eliminate the pathology. Such a procedure is carried out not only for diagnostic, but also for therapeutic purposes.
Assessment of electrical activity of nerve trunks (electroneurography) and muscles (electromyography).
CT or MRI. These studies make it possible to determine pathological changes in tissues with high accuracy. With the help of CT and MRI, such disorders are detected as: bone tissue necrosis, fractures, arthritis, damage to nerve fibers and soft tissues of the limb, inflammation of the tendon sheaths. However, MRI is not suitable for everyone. Do not prescribe this examination to patients with a pacemaker, with claustrophobia and pregnant women.
Scintigraphy. A special substance is injected into the tissues. When it accumulates, the doctor examines the affected area using a gamma camera. Scintigraphy makes it possible to diagnose avascular necrosis of bone tissue, arthritis, fractures and synovitis.
The study of the composition of synovial fluid. A special device is introduced into the joint, with the help of which the articular fluid is taken. Then it is examined for the detection of pathogenic flora in it.
Wrist pain treatment
A comprehensive therapeutic effect on the body will allow you to achieve a speedy recovery.
Treatment is carried out in such areas as:
Fixation of the damaged area. The patient may be put on a cast, splint, or other fixative.
Treatment methods of physiotherapy.
Performing exercise therapy, visiting the massage therapist’s office.
Taking medications.
Surgical intervention is resorted to in extreme cases.
Medication Therapy
There are many drugs that allow you to cope with diseases of the wrist joint. Most of them help with a specific pathology. The doctor should prescribe them after he knows the exact diagnosis of the patient.
The main groups of medicines that can be used to treat wrist pain are:
Analgesics: have an analgesic effect.
Chondroprotectors: They are used to restore the patient’s lost range of motion. Preparations can be prescribed both in the form of tablets and in the form of an ointment.
Antirheumatic drugs: Assign in order to prevent dystrophic and degenerative processes in the articular tissues.
Calcium preparations: Assign to patients with violation of the integrity of bone tissue.
Corticosteroids: Used to relieve pain caused by arthritis and arthrosis.
Specialists forbid patients to take any painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs until a diagnosis is made. Otherwise, it will be difficult to make an accurate diagnosis. If it is impossible to endure the pain, then it is permissible to take a Ketanov pill and immediately consult a doctor.
Physiotherapy
If the pain in the wrist was provoked by the injury, then for the speedy restoration of tissues, the doctor may prescribe physiotherapy. These procedures enhance the nutrition of the affected area, as well as enhance the therapeutic effect of the drugs used, such as ointments or creams. Thanks to physiotherapy, it is possible to remove salt deposits from the joints.
The most prescribed procedures:
Ultrasound treatment. Effects: improvement of blood and lymph flow, elimination of inflammation, improvement of the permeability of the dermis, effective penetration of ointments and gels into the affected tissues. Thanks to this treatment, recovery is fast.
Magnetotherapy. Effects: reduction of the intensity of the inflammatory process, relief of pain, removal of edema.
Electrophoresis. This procedure is prescribed for various diseases that are accompanied by inflammatory phenomena.
Laser treatment. effects: stimulation of metabolic processes, improvement of blood circulation, removal of excess salts, relief of pain.
Paraffin applications. They are prescribed for damage to the tendons, namely, for chronic tendonitis.
Shock wave therapy. This procedure is often prescribed to patients who need surgery. Sometimes, thanks to SWT, it is possible to avoid surgery. Such treatment is indicated for patients with injuries.
After completing a full treatment course, a person gets rid of pain. The average number of procedures is six. The duration of one session is 20 minutes. During treatment, you can not play sports, it is important to exclude the load on the joint.
Therapeutic exercise
Complexes of physiotherapy exercises allow you to cope with various pathologies of the joints. Thanks to well-chosen exercises, it is possible to restore the volume of lost movements and strengthen muscles. Classes must be held under medical supervision.
It is important to ensure that during the exercise a person does not experience pain. If discomfort occurs, classes should be stopped. It is allowed to perform simple exercises on your own, but the doctor should recommend them. You can use a special massage ball. The load on the arm should not be too intense.
Massage
If a person suffers from a chronic disease of the joints, then massage is indicated for him. It contributes to the normal outflow of lymph, eliminates pain, improves tissue nutrition.
Massage can only be performed by a specialist with a medical background. If a person has not been trained in professional massage, then he can harm the health of the patient.
Operative therapy
The operation is prescribed in the case when there is no result from conservative methods. Sometimes a surgeon is resorted to in order to restore a joint after an injury.
The operation is performed under anesthesia. the altered articular structures are removed, the tendon aponeurosis is performed and sutures are applied. Rehabilitation takes up to 3 months. It all depends on the scope and nature of the intervention.
diet therapy
To keep your joints healthy, you need to include foods rich in vitamin D and calcium in your diet. These include: yogurt, cheese, milk, broccoli, rich green vegetables.
It is useful to eat oily sea fish and nuts, as they are a source of omega-3 fatty acids. During pregnancy, you need to monitor the weight and prevent the formation of edema. To do this, you need to eat right, drink enough water.
Alcoholic drinks are excluded. They negatively affect the condition of the joints and bones. Men should not drink more than 2 servings of alcohol per day, and women – more than 1 serving. To reduce the likelihood of developing osteoporosis, you need to give up tobacco. In addition, smoking interferes with normal tissue repair after an injury.
[Video] Physiotherapy by Jeff Cavaliere. About the causes of wrist pain, the anatomy of the hands and exercises to eliminate pain: