Are you suffering from wrist pain? Today I will educate you about a painful wrist disease - "Mom's Hand".
People who exert too much force on their hands are more likely to suffer from "Mom's Hand"
"Mom's hands" mostly occur in middle-aged women or postpartum women. It is caused by improper force or overexertion of the hands (especially the wrists and thumbs), such as repeated actions such as washing, cooking, and holding children. Especially for postpartum mothers, due to hormonal changes at the end of pregnancy, the bursae and joints are prone to slight inflammatory reactions. At this time, if there is a slight improper or excessive force, such as excessive bending of the wrist when holding the child, excessive abduction of the thumb, or prolonged If you hold a baby in your arms, you are prone to "mother's hand".
What are "mother's hands"?
The essence of "Mom's Hand" is stenosing tenosynovitis of the radial styloid process. When the wrist or thumb is fixed in a certain position for repeated and excessive activities, friction will often occur between the tendon and the tendon sheath, which will lead to edema and fibrosis over time. , causing lumen stenosis. When the tendon moves within the tendon sheath, the path it passes through becomes narrowed, causing pain and movement disorders. This is tenosynovitis.
"Mom's hand" is a common tendon sheath disease that occurs in the extensor pollicis brevis and abductor pollicis longus tendon sheaths. It is a chronic aseptic inflammation of the radial styloid process caused by repeated friction between the two tendons in the tendon sheaths.
"Mom's Hands" Self-Assessment
If you have wrist pain, mothers can conduct a small experiment at home to self-diagnose whether they have radial styloid stenosing tenosynovitis.
Finkelstein's sign (ulnar deviation test of clenched fist)
The patient places the thumb in the palm of the hand, clasping the thumb with the other four fingers and then making a fist, so that the wrist joint is passively ulnar deflected. If pain is obviously felt at the radial styloid process, it is considered positive.
How to treat?
1. Brake in time
Give your wrist a rest: You can wear appropriate protective gear to reduce the movement of the affected area so that it can get adequate rest.
2. Local physical therapy
Massage, hot compress, shock wave, laser and other physical therapy treatments can be performed. These methods are safe and have good therapeutic effects. Among them, shock wave therapy has a quick effect and has become a hot research topic in recent years.
3. Closed treatment
If the first two methods are not effective, you can try closed treatment. Local injection of drugs is more effective, but it should not be used multiple times. Because the drug is in direct contact with tendons, synovium, tendon sheaths and other tissues for a long time, it is easy to increase the fragility of the tissues.
4. Medication
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs such as celecoxib, loxoprofen, and Voltaren can be used for treatment.
5. Small acupuncture treatment
A small needle knife can be used to loosen the narrowed tendon sheath to relieve pain. It works quickly, but it is an invasive procedure, and patients are afraid of it.
6. Surgical treatment
If conservative treatment is ineffective, surgical treatment can be considered. The narrow tendon sheath is incised and part of the tendon sheath is removed, so that the tendon can smoothly drive the movement of the fingers and wrist.
The emphasis is on prevention!
Although the above treatment methods can alleviate the condition to a certain extent, it is difficult to achieve a radical cure. Once the patient is tired again or exerts improper force, it is easy to relapse. Therefore, the key to a complete cure for tenosynovitis is to pay attention to rest, change the wrong way of using your hands, and nip it in the bud. For mothers who often do housework and take care of their babies, you can do the following in daily life:
1. Use moderate force. Do not hold the baby with one hand, mop the floor, buy groceries, etc. with the other hand to prevent overexertion.
2. When holding the baby, the posture is correct and the force distribution is reasonable. The force is provided by the trunk, shoulders, elbows and wrists. Do not use too much force on your wrists or fingers alone, and do not maintain one posture for too long. It is best to alternate arms on both sides.
3. Use safety straps and strollers instead of holding the baby with both hands.
4. Balance work and rest, relax your hands after exerting force, and move your fingers and wrist joints. When tingling begins, wrist exercises are one of the simple ways to engage all the wrist muscles, restore circulation, and eliminate flexed posture in the wrist.
5. Soak your hands in warm water after exertion or before going to bed, which can promote blood circulation and relieve hand fatigue.
6. If necessary, seek medical treatment as soon as possible.
