Monday, November 16, 2009

Sore Wrist Prevention and Care

By Tom Nicholson

Amongst all the joints in our body, the wrist is probably the most useful and the most complex of them all. For one thing, your daily activities most often depend on the dexterity and strength of your wrist. For another thing, your wrist is made up of an intricate network of eight carpal bones, five metacarpal bones and two forearm bones, all tightly packed and connected with nerves, blood vessels, and ligaments. As such, whenever you experience a sore wrist, you had better hop on to its treatments pronto.

Why Worry?

You may be surprised by the strong emphasis on seeking adequate treatment for your sore wrist, whether that is home remedies or medical attention. The simple answer is when you hesitate to seek treatment the problems can quickly escalate. Imagine life without the strength or dexterity to do common every day things, this could affect your quality of life significantly.

Also, common activities like working at your desk for hours, engaging in sports like golf and tennis, playing musical instruments and even washing the dishes can aggravate the pain of a sore wrist that you have previously overlooked. Ultimately, you will have to deal with more complicated, more expensive, and more painful consequences for your indifference. So, as early as possible, listen to your wrist. You will be amply rewarded with longer, better and healthier service from one of the most important external body parts we can possibly have.

Common Causes

Your painful wrist can be a symptom of an underlying medical condition, an injury brought by repetitive motions involving it, and a trauma brought upon it. Your doctor will ask questions about the history of the injury, frequency, location, and kind of pain felt, and medications being taken to alleviate your symptoms, amongst other things, to arrive at a correct diagnosis.

There are several medical conditions that result in a sore wrist. Things like ganglion cysts, arthritis, carpal tunnel and tendonitis can all cause pain and inflammation of your wrist joint. You can also bring on the pain by typing at your keyboard for long hours or playing certain sports. Any time you are engaging in repetitive motion you need proper form and support to prevent pain or injury. Another possibility is a sprain or cracked bone in one of the 15 bones of the wrist.

Keep in mind, however, that these causes can be strongly interconnected. For example, carpal tunnel syndrome often results from repetitive motions like typing at a keyboard for long periods of time without the benefit of simple hand exercises.

Treatment Options

You want to have the correct diagnosis before you begin treatment for a sore wrist. The wrong treatment is as bad as no treatment at all! Some instances will call for a RICE protocol such as in case of a sprain, while carpal tunnel syndrome may need surgery.

A medical professional should be the one to assign the best treatment for your sore wrist. Nevertheless the RICE protocol, that is rest, ice, compress and elevation is good practical advice for both first aid and after care. In some instances, you may have to make some lifestyle changes such is normally the case for arthritis. Discuss all options with your doctor when it comes to surgery, cortisone or other pain relievers, as you will have many physical and financial repercussions to deal with afterwards.

A sore wrist can be truly painful in more ways than one. Nevertheless, if you pursue the correct medical treatment and attend to personal care it is a pain you can leave in the past.

About the Author:

No comments:

Post a Comment