De Quervain's Tenosynovitis

On July 14th I posted a blog (click here to read it) about my current wrist problem, caused (surprisingly) from pregnancy. It was confirmed by an orthopedic doctor on July 25th that I have de Quervain's Tenosynovitis, so I thought I'd post a follow up blog with more information about it.

WHAT IS DE QUERVAIN'S TENOSYNOVITIS?
de Quervain's tenosynovitis is a painful condition affecting the tendons located on the thumb side of your wrist. A tendon is a strong band of tissue that attaches muscle to bone. A sheath, or covering, surrounds the tendons that go to your thumb. Tenosynovitis is an irritation of this sheath.

HOW DOES IT OCCUR?
de Quervain's tenosynovitis usually occurs from increased swelling in the body from pregnancy, or from overusing your thumb or wrist, especially in activities that move your thumb directly away from your wrist such as skiing or hammering.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?
*Pain when you move your thumb or wrist
*Pain when you make a fist
*Swelling and tenderness on the thumb side of your wrist
*Feeling or hearing creaking as the tendon slides through its sheath

HOW IS IT DIAGNOSED?
Your health care provider will examine your wrist and thumb and find the areas that are tender and painful to move. An x-ray may be taken to be sure you don't have a broken bone.

HOW IS IT TREATED?
The initial treatment for de Quervain's tenosynovitis is a splint that will cover your wrist and thumb. It is important that you protect your thumb and wrist from activities that worsen your pain.

Treatment may also include:
*Placing an ice pack on your thumb and wrist for 20 to 30 minutes every 3 to 4 hours until the pain goes away
*Doing ice massage for 5 to 10 minutes several times a day
*Taking an anti-inflammatory medication
*Having an injection of a medication like cortisone
*Surgery

You will be given rehabilitation exercises to help speed your recovery and prevent the problem from returning. The longer you have symptoms before you start treatment, the longer it will take to get better.

My doctor prescribed physical therapy for me, but first I plan to ice my wrist and try the following exercises. My doctor was confident that although I've had the wrist pain for 3.5 months, my de Quervain's should be gone within 2-3 weeks of rehabilitation exercises.

1) Opposition stretch: Rest your injured hand on a table, palm up. Touch the tip of your thumb to the tip of your little finger. Hold this position for 6 seconds. Repeat 10 to 12 times.

2) Wrist rock stretch: Hold your injured hand out in front of you in the handshake position. Make a fist with your injured hand, but tuck your thumb inside your palm. Move your wrist down, hold for 5 seconds, then move your wrist up and hold for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 to 12 times.

3) Thumb extension: Hold a small weight (a soup can, for example) in your injured hand. Rest your forearm on a table with your wrist and hand hanging over the edge of the table. Starting with your hand in the handshake position (thumb up), move your wrist up and down. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

4) Wrist extension: Start in the same position as for the thumb extension (holding a small weight, resting your forearm on the table), but this time turn your hand palm down. Bend your wrist up, hold for 2 to 3 seconds, then bend your wrist down and hold for 2 to 3 seconds. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

5) Palm-down curl: Stand with your hands at your side, holding a small weight palm down in your injured hand. Keeping your palm down and bending your elbow, slowly curl the weight up toward your shoulder as far as possible. For each repetition, move your hand down to the starting position more slowly than you lift your hand toward your shoulder. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

6) Finger spring: Place a large rubber band around the outside of your thumb and the rest of your fingers. Open your fingers to stretch the rubber band. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

Hopefully this works because I'm still waking up in the night or morning and finding my wrist locked and in pain with my hand numb, which means it takes awhile before I can start using it (and therefore have a hard time picking up my baby). He said I also have slight carpal tunnel, but these same exercises should help. I've since learned of several other women with similar experiences (my hair stylist said her entire forearm was numb for a month after her baby was born) but most never realize the connection since it's only a small percentage that still have it three months after their baby was born. Lucky me. :p