Treatment Options For 5 Common Medical Conditions That Cause Hand Pain

There are a number of medical conditions that cause hand pain. Treatment options for the same will vary according to the different types of conditions and their triggers. Injuries and fractures are some of the most common ways of suffering from hand pain. There are a few home remedies and OTC medications available for treating hand pain, however, medical attention is advised for prolonged relief.

Here is a detailed list of some of the most common medical conditions which lead to developing symptoms of hand pain and their treatments.

Arthritis
This disease happens to be one of the most common causes of hand pain in which the cartilage is severely affected. Joints move freely due to the cartilage which forms a cushion in between the two connectors joints. However, deterioration of this cartilage leads to inflammation and swelling that causes hand pain. Common areas of the hand which gets affected due to cartilage deterioration include the base of the thumb, middle joints of the fingers, or even end joint of the fingers closest to the tip. Treatment options for hand pain caused due to arthritis will entirely depend on the pain and severity of the condition.

Common treatments for hand pain caused due to arthritis include-

• Anti-inflammatory or analgesic painkillers
• Splints for the fingers and wrists
• Heat therapy and physical therapy
• Surgery for arthritis hand pain is the last recourse only when the condition is too severe to be treated

Trigger finger
Alternatively known as Stenosing tenosynovitis, the fingers and your thumbs are locked in a bent position due to this condition. Trigger finger is one of the leading causes of hand pain, common in adults who are between the ages of 40 and 60, mostly affecting women.

Common treatments for trigger finger include-

• Use of stints to support the bent finger gradually forcing them back into upright position
• There are a number of over the counter medications to ease the pain while recovering
• Another treatment option for hand pain caused due to trigger finger includes corticosteroid injections. Corticosteroids are a class of drugs that invoke certain physiological processes to invoke responses and thus help regulate tissue and muscle behavior
• These responses help in controlling varied symptoms of medical conditions causing hand pain, inflammation being the more prominent one
• Surgery is one of the many options available for treating hand pain in case medications, and home remedies don’t prove to be effective

Fractures
Hand pain is more than often a result of fractures. Visible indicators of a fracture include stiffness, swelling and ultimately loss of movement of the finger of thumb. Fracture treatment entirely depends on the type of the break which is categorized accordingly;

• Simple fractures
  In case of a simple fracture, the broken bone is aligned back into position using a brace and stabilized for a couple of months until it heals and is rejoined
• Complex fractures
  Complex fractures are more difficult to treat as the bone may entirely shift out of the socket and alignment. Treatment includes the use of pins or even plates to realign the bone since the healing time is significant for complex fractures
• Compound fractures
  Bone breaks which pierce through the skin and cannot be supported by stints or even plates. Surgery is the only option for these bone fractures

Carpal tunnel syndrome
A severe medical condition which affects the median nerve responsible for sending and receiving all the neural impulses from your brain, which controls the movement. The median nerve passes through a tunnel known as the carpal tunnel connecting your fingers and thumbs, thus controlling the influx and outflow of impulses. The syndrome causes the walls of the tunnel to close in and put pressure on the median nerve cutting of these vital impulses that are also responsible for all the sensations felt in your hand. The discomfort translates into pain which is why carpal tunnel syndrome is one of the common causes leading to severe hand pain.

Treatment options for hand pain caused due to carpal tunnel syndrome include;

• Physical therapy to reduce the swelling and help restore movement
• Steroid injections and shots that invoke physiological responses
• Wrist splints that can support the tunnel relieving pressure on the median nerve
• Analgesic and anti-inflammatory painkillers
• Resting the hand and wrists

De Quervain’s Tendinitis
Hand pain is also caused due to this condition which primarily affects your thumb side of the wrist. Associated symptoms inflammation and irritation at the base of the thumb. Treatment options for the symptoms of tendinitis include cortisone shots, anti-inflammatory medications and a splint rest for the thumb and wrist. Surgery is another option for severe hand pain.

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