De Quervain’s tenosynovitis Warning Signs: What to Look Out For

Painful condition where the tendons on the thumb side of the wrist are affected. This causes difficulty in turning the wrist, hold any object and fold the thumb.

The common symptoms include:

• Severe pain at the base of the thumb
• Swelling near the base of the thumb
• Difficulty in moving your thumb and wrist when you are doing something that involves grasping or pinching
• A “sticking” or “stopandgo” sensation in your thumb when moving it

→ Common treatment options

→ How is this diagnosed?

The exact cause is unknown but the repetitive use of the wrist worsens the condition. Any activity such as griping, grasping, clenching involves the tendons (rope like structures which attach bones to the wrist), repetitive actions will cause damage to the sheath covering the tendons at the base of the thumb and the wrist.

The other causes include:

• Direct injury to wrist or tendons on the wrist side
• Inflammatory arthritis like rheumatoid arthritis

Risk factors include

• Age more common among age group of 30 50
• Gender more common among women
• Occupational risks

→ Questions to ask your doctor

→ Interested to know more? Check out the full article here