Hand & wrist
Hand and wrist pain
Wrist pain at the keyboard, a thumb that catches, a grip that has weakened.
Photograph: Yan Krukau, Pexels
In one paragraph
Wrist and hand pain comes from tendons that are overworked (typing, lifting, a new baby), an irritated nerve at the wrist, a sprain, or a stiff joint after a fracture. Physiotherapy works out which structure it is and treats it, with splinting and load changes where they help.
What you may notice
- 01
Pain at the keyboard, on the phone or when wringing a cloth.
- 02
A thumb that hurts to lift a kettle or a baby.
- 03
Numb fingers at night that you shake awake.
- 04
A grip that has weakened; jars and door handles are harder.
The first visit
What is looked at
Each tendon and joint is tested, nerve signs are checked, grip is measured, and the neck is examined, because arm and hand symptoms often start higher up.
Treatment
What is done
Hands-on treatment of stiff joints, progressive tendon loading, splint advice for rest and for work, and specific exercises; a patient wrote on Google that her hand and wrist pain was relieved each time she came.
See a doctor first if
A wrist that is deformed, cannot bear weight or was injured in a fall needs an X-ray first.
The range in question
The textbook full range for a healthy joint, the figure the assessment measures you against.
A patient wrote
Dr. Brijesh is a magician when it comes to treating pain. I’ve visited him multiple times for issues with knee, hand, and wrist pain, and each time he managed to relieve my discomfort completely. I highly recommend him for physiotherapy.
Questions
Is it carpal tunnel?
Numbness in the thumb, index and middle fingers, worse at night, points that way; the assessment checks the nerve at the wrist and at the neck before deciding.
Should I rest it completely?
Rest settles pain but does not build the tendon back; a graded return to load is what lasts.
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