What Are The Different Causes of Joint Pain In Hands?

Joint pain in the hands may affect an individual’s everyday activities. Some people may have joint pain in their hands that worsens when they press or move the finger. Others may experience constant or repeated joint pain in their hands that does not improve with rest or some pain medication. If you want to know other possible treatments to relieve pain, you can also try the traditional Chinese massage.

Causes of Joint Pain in The Hands

Here are the following causes, symptoms, and treatment of hand and wrist pain.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

This condition influences the middle nerve, which reaches out from the lower arm, through the carpal tunnel, and into the palm. Individuals may also encounter numbness or pain in hand and finger joints if the median nerve gets compacted inside the carpal tunnel.

Individuals can foster carpal tunnel syndrome if they harm their hands or wrist. Repetitive developments, for example, typing, can bother the tendons that structure the carpal tunnel. Furthermore, some individuals get carpal tunnel syndrome for no known reason.

Treatments:

Addressing this type of hand pain may vary depending upon the seriousness of an indivdual’s symptoms. They incorporate:

staying away from activities that exasperate the median nerve
wearing a brace or splint to keep the wrist and hand straight
getting steroid injections
taking over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or pain medication to reduce swelling and pain
joining in physical therapy

Tenosynovitis and Tendonitis

A tendon or sinew is a cord of dense fibrous connective tissue that connects muscles to bones. Two typical issues that influence the tendons are tenosynovitis and tendonitis.

Tendonitis happens when a tendon gets inflamed, leading to pain, swelling, and diminished movement. On the other hand, tenosynovitis is the inflammation of the thin layer that covers a tendon. It can prompt joint stiffness, pain, and swelling.

Treatments:

Individuals can deal with minor tendon issues with RICE treatment. Additionally, those who have extreme or constant symptoms may need:

physical therapy
corticosteroid injections to ease swelling and pain.
surgical procedure

Arthritis

Arthritis is a broad term for conditions that prompt joint pain, inflammation, and stiffness. Rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis are the two common kinds of arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory condition that occurs when the body’s insusceptible framework erroneously attacks healthy tissue.

On the other hand, osteoarthritis includes the deficiency of cartilage, a smooth elastic tissue covering the surface of a bone at a joint. Also, it is the most common type of arthritis, particularly among grown-ups beyond 50 years old.

Furthermore, other forms of arthritis incorporate juvenile arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, lupus, gout, osteoporosis, and Raynaud’s wonder.

Arthritis symptoms include:

joint pain and swelling
difficulty sitting, walking, or standing up
joint stiffness that continues for 30 minutes, particularly in the morning
loss of flexibility in the tiny hand and finger joints
trouble doing fine motor activities such as grasping and tying shoelaces

Possible Treatment:

The treatment objectives for arthritis are to reduce pain, slow the progression of the disease, and also improve joint mobility.

A doctor may prescribe at least one of the following medicines:

oral or topical pain relievers
disease-adjusting meds that restrain the body’s regular immune response
anti-inflammatory drugs or corticosteroids to lessen joint inflammation
physical therapy to improve mobility and strengthen the joints
supportive devices, like walkers and braces
surgery to replace or repair joints
changes in lifestyle, including weight loss to ease tension on the joints

Ganglion cysts

This condition is fluid-filled growths that typically happen on the rear of the wrist and the edge of the finger joints. These developments can feel firm or soft to touch. Ganglion cysts are generally harmless. However, some individuals report feeling delicacy, weakness, or pain close to a ganglion cyst.

Treatment:

The specific causes of hand pain for ganglion cysts stay unknown. In any case, specialists believe these soft tissues create connective tissue traumas and chronic issues that influence the joints, like arthritis.

A ganglion cyst regularly resolves without proper medical consideration. Also, specialists tend to preserve treatment for this kind of hand pain that affects mobility. Depending on its area, a doctor or surgeon can deplete or surgically eliminate a ganglion cyst.

Diabetes

Unmanageable diabetes can prompt different musculoskeletal complications. This condition can affect the hands and fingers, for example, carpal tunnel syndrome, Dupuytren’s contracture, and diabetic neuropathy.

Dupuytren’s contracture is characterized by the thickening of the connective tissues in hand. Then after some time, the bands of connective tissue become more limited, causing the fingers to twist toward the palm.

Dupuytren’s contracture symptoms include:

discomfort or pain in the fingers or palm
nodular developments or pits on the fingers
difficulty straightening the hand or palm
trouble applying the hands or doing fine movements

On the other hand, diabetic neuropathy is nerve harm that happens in individuals with diabetes. Neuropathy affects the joints and nerves in the hands and arms, leading to tingling or burning sensation, weakness, or numbness.

Treatments:

Therapy and medication for finger and hand pain conditions identified with diabetes focus on lightening symptoms and forestalling disease advancement.

Generally, doctors treat Dupuytren’s contracture with pain medication, corticosteroid infusions, and physical therapy.

Other treatments for diabetic neuropathy incorporate:

lidocaine ointment or patches
nerve pain medications, for example, some kinds of anticonvulsants or antidepressants
physical therapy

When To See a Doctor

Finally, an individual should visit a doctor for severe, chronic, or reoccurring pain in the wrists or hands.

Schedule an appointment with a doctor when your hand pain:

gets consistently worse
maybe because of a fall or further injury
does not improve with home treatment
does not respond to remedy that a specialist prescribes
occurs alongside different symptoms, for example, a fever, arm pain, or fatigue

Additionally, the following conditions are indications that you need to go to the emergency room. These include:

intense, unexpected, excruciating hand pain
an apparent injury to the hand that is very painful
a suspected broken arm, hand, or wrist.

Moreover, keep in mind that the treatment may vary depending on the definite causes of hand pain. If home remedies are not effective, the best way is to get a proper medical consultation.