Your hands and wrists are involved in so much of what you do every day, but what many of us do not think about is how much wear and tear that puts on them. However, this daily wear and tear is one reason why wrist pain is so common. Just how common is it? Research shows that if you have hand and wrist pain, you’re part of the over 19% of people who do.
It should be enough that your hand and/or wrist hurts, but for many people that pales in comparison to how much it affects their day-to-day lives. Everything from opening a door to typing an email becomes a much harder task when you are experiencing hand and/or wrist pain.
What you do not have to do, though, is sit and hope your pain will go away. You can partner with a physical therapist to discover the cause, the accompanying symptoms, and the treatment options available for your hand and wrist pain.
Causes of hand and wrist pain
Hand and wrist pain can be short-term symptoms caused by minor injuries, but your pain will not typically last for longer than three months if that is the case. Short-term hand and wrist pain is most commonly caused by injuries from falls. Such injuries typically include sprains, strains and fractures.
If your pain does last for longer than three months, you have graduated to chronic pain. A few of the most common culprits behind chronic hand and wrist pain are:
- Carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Osteoarthritis.
- Rheumatoid arthritis.
- Repetitive wrist and hand movements.
- Tendinitis.
- Pinched nerves.
Symptoms that commonly go along with hand and wrist pain
Feeling pain in your hand and/or wrist is bad enough, but it’s likely that this symptom will be accompanied by others. Which symptoms you are feeling in addition to pain depends on the cause of your pain. However, common symptoms that go along with hand and wrist pain include:
- Swelling.
- Stiffness.
- Reduced range of motion.
- Difficulty performing tasks that you had no previous difficulty with.
- Tenderness.
- Numbness or tingling.
- Weakness.
Treatments
So, you have decided to seek help for your hand and wrist pain, but you are not sure who can help you. One person you can turn to is a physical therapist. These medical professionals specialize in helping people just like you reduce pain and address the root cause of their symptoms with treatments like:
- Targeted stretching exercises.
- Condition-specific strengthening plans.
- Manual therapy.
- Work conditioning (SMART program).
- Ergonomics training.
Find a location near you today to schedule an appointment or an initial free screening and start getting the help you need for your hand and wrist condition.
