Wrist pain can be debilitating, especially in our technology-driven world. Many factors can lead to wrist pain, and diagnosing the exact cause of your pain can be tricky unless an apparent fall or incident is the culprit. There are many types of wrist pain, including aching, intense pain, immobility, or the experience of "pins and needles" or tingling. Wrist pain can be the result of overuse or misuse of the wrist or hand, or it can result from an injury. Determining what has caused you pain may help you to treat symptoms and prevent future damage or chronic pain.
5 Causes of Wrist Pain:
- Carpal tunnel syndrome: Carpal tunnel syndrome can be caused by repetitive motion or holding your wrist in a flexed or extended position for a prolonged time. Carpal tunnel creates numbness and tingling in the hand and arm caused by a pinched nerve in the wrist.
- Sprains and fractures: Wrist fractures are very common, as are wrist sprains. A "popping" noise often signals wrist sprains at the time of the incident. It may be painful, but you will still be able to use it. On the other hand, fractures are often accompanied by a crack, and movement after the injury may make a small grinding or crunching sound that is not present with sprains. There is often pain right around the break and with finger movement. Sometimes the fingers tingle or feel numb at the tips.
- Arthritis: Both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are common causes of wrist pain. People with wrist arthritis have wrist pain, swelling, and stiffness. The other main symptom of wrist arthritis is a change in your grip strength, such as an inability to open jars, use keys, or turn doorknobs.
- Ganglion cysts: Ganglion cysts are noncancerous lumps that most commonly develop along the tendons or joints of your wrists or hands. Ganglion cysts can cause pain, tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness.
- De Quervain's tenosynovitis: This is a common and painful condition that can affect the tendons in your wrist. With de Quervain's tenosynovitis, your tendon sheath becomes swollen, which causes pain and limits how much you can move your wrist and thumb.
Pay attention to chronic wrist pain. The pain signals something is wrong, and it is essential to get a diagnosis and a personalized treatment plan from an orthopedic specialist. The earlier the doctor can determine the cause of the pain, the easier it is to provide treatment, and the more successful your recovery will be.
Some common wrist injuries can be treated with rest, braces and/or physical therapy. Other injuries or causes of chronic wrist pain may require surgery. In this case, an orthopedic wrist specialist can help determine if minimally invasive surgery, such as arthroscopy, is an available option or if a more complex surgical technique is necessary.
Dr. Daneca DiPaolo is a highly skilled, board certified orthopedic surgeon and hand specialist located in Grenada, Mississippi. She offers the newest orthopedic techniques, and she provides quality, compassionate, state of the art orthopedic care.
