Arthritis can always be a possibility depending on many factors (family history of this condition, for instance), but what is more likely is hand fatigue from the repetitive-movements that occur with taking care of an infant.
I am wondering if you are experiencing deQuervain's tenosynovitis:
- Difficulty moving your thumb and wrist when you're doing activities that involve grasping or pinching
- A "sticking" or "stop-and-go" sensation in your thumb when trying to move it
You will know if you have deQuervain's by a simple test that you can do right now (you can search "Finkelstein test" on YouTube to see this in action):
"The test most frequently used to diagnose de Quervain's disease is the Finkelstein test." When my son was an infant, I was diagnosed with deQuervains, and this is the test I performed with the physical therapist:
- Make a fist with your thumb placed in your palm
- Bend your fist at the wrist in a gentle downward motion (like you are shaking someone's hand, but with your thumb still inside your closed fist), with arm slightly extended away from you.
- "the swollen tendons are pulled through the tight space and stretched. If this movement is painful, you may have de Quervain's disease."
You can see the distinction between pain in thumb-side of wrist and top of wrist (scroll down to "Diagnosis" and review picture):
http://www.handuniversity.com/topics.asp?Topic_ID=45
More links for deQuervain's:
https://www.empowher.com/media/reference/de-quervains-tenosynovitis
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/de-quervains-tenosynovitis/DS00692/DSECTION=symptoms
If you do not experience pain on the thumb-side of your wrist(s), you may not have deQuervain's (of course, we can't diagnose you over the internet). Can you be more descriptive where the pain is located, when you notice it (during what activities, day/night), and what type of pain (pulsating, sharp, dull, ache).
Also, have you tried resting your left hand as much as possible, and if so, is the pain alleviated for a time? You may also want to ask someone else in your household or a friend to watch you pick up your son...my husband told me that I was using "the claw" to pick up my son (my hand was super-flexed and unnecessarily "claw-like" to hold him when he was an infant...and I had to repeatedly tell myself to relax my hand, and not hold all of his weight in my thumb, but use my arms more).
Let us know if this is on the right track, and if not, we'll help you narrow down the root of your pain. Hang in there!
Comment Reply
PrincessCoffee,
Congratulations on your new son! :-)
Arthritis can always be a possibility depending on many factors (family history of this condition, for instance), but what is more likely is hand fatigue from the repetitive-movements that occur with taking care of an infant.
I am wondering if you are experiencing deQuervain's tenosynovitis:
- Difficulty moving your thumb and wrist when you're doing activities that involve grasping or pinching
- A "sticking" or "stop-and-go" sensation in your thumb when trying to move it
You will know if you have deQuervain's by a simple test that you can do right now (you can search "Finkelstein test" on YouTube to see this in action):
"The test most frequently used to diagnose de Quervain's disease is the Finkelstein test." When my son was an infant, I was diagnosed with deQuervains, and this is the test I performed with the physical therapist:
- Make a fist with your thumb placed in your palm
- Bend your fist at the wrist in a gentle downward motion (like you are shaking someone's hand, but with your thumb still inside your closed fist), with arm slightly extended away from you.
- "the swollen tendons are pulled through the tight space and stretched. If this movement is painful, you may have de Quervain's disease."
You can see the distinction between pain in thumb-side of wrist and top of wrist (scroll down to "Diagnosis" and review picture):
http://www.handuniversity.com/topics.asp?Topic_ID=45
More links for deQuervain's:
https://www.empowher.com/media/reference/de-quervains-tenosynovitis
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/de-quervains-tenosynovitis/DS00692/DSECTION=symptoms
If you do not experience pain on the thumb-side of your wrist(s), you may not have deQuervain's (of course, we can't diagnose you over the internet). Can you be more descriptive where the pain is located, when you notice it (during what activities, day/night), and what type of pain (pulsating, sharp, dull, ache).
Also, have you tried resting your left hand as much as possible, and if so, is the pain alleviated for a time? You may also want to ask someone else in your household or a friend to watch you pick up your son...my husband told me that I was using "the claw" to pick up my son (my hand was super-flexed and unnecessarily "claw-like" to hold him when he was an infant...and I had to repeatedly tell myself to relax my hand, and not hold all of his weight in my thumb, but use my arms more).
Let us know if this is on the right track, and if not, we'll help you narrow down the root of your pain. Hang in there!
October 25, 2009 - 7:14amThis Comment
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