If your hands and fingers hurt, it means that the body is signaling joint diseases or internal pathologies. Often, the patient tries to solve the problem alone, not recognizing the danger of short-term disability. Information on why there is pain in the joints of the fingers and what to do is useful for those who have already felt the first symptoms of the disease and whose close relatives are suffering from joint pathology.
Cause
Pain and inflammation of the hands are associated with a number of diseases. These include:
Gouty arthritis
The disease occurs over the age of 20 years. The thumb is the first to be exposed to the inflammatory process. There is a paroxysmal course of arthritis. The attack often begins at night. Joint pain is acute. The skin above the affected joint turns purple. The finger becomes hot and difficult to bend. Inflammation lasts for up to 10 days. The attack goes away suddenly, without treatment, but reappears soon.
Polyosteoarthritis
Patients over the age of 40 are sick: men are less likely than women. The disease is characterized by Heberden nodules, when nodules begin to form, swelling and redness of the joints, burning, sharp pain, and in some patients the nodules develop asymptomatically. In the case of polyosteroarthrosis, nodules can also be observed on the joints in the middle of the finger. Bouchard nodules are spindle-shaped, almost painless, and characterized by slow growth.
Rheumatoid arthritis
The development of the disease is manifested by inflammation of the index finger and middle joints. Together with the metacarpophalangeal joints, the wrists become inflamed, swollen, and sore. The finger joint is particularly sore in the morning. Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with weakness, joint pain and fever.
The development of rheumatoid arthritis is observed after stress, hypothermia, and infections.
Psoriatic arthritis
The pathology develops in patients with psoriasis. With pathology, joint pain and swelling are observed. The pathology has another name - "sausage" finger. However, all the joints and joints of the finger become inflamed. In rare cases, the joints in both hands become inflamed, but on different fingers.
Tenosynovit de Quervain
Inflammation only affects the thumb. The pain is caused by the load when you try to stretch it towards the elbow. Sometimes your finger hurts for no apparent reason.
Rhizarthrosis
Rare pathology. Rhizarthrosis is a chronic form of arthrosis. The localization is shown at the bottom of the thumb. The disease leads to deformity of the cartilage tissue. The thumb bone is deformed, which restricts the movement of the inflamed joint.
Carpal tunnel syndrome
The pathology manifests itself with the following symptoms:
- The pain is felt inside the thumb.
- The index finger hurts.
- There is numbness in the skin of the palm.
- Decreased motor skills of the hand.
Without treatment, the nerve loses its ability to function, leading to disability.
Raynaud's disease
The causes of the disease are a decrease in the tone of the capillaries. Symptoms include numbness, paleness of the hands, dilation of the blood vessels, which causes the fingers to turn red. Sometimes there is a bluish color, acute pain, edema. The pathology is characterized by constant freezing of the hands, which turn bluish or black in the last stage of development. Trophic ulcers are often observed.
Injury
Hand pain is most commonly associated with bruises and sprains. Bruising of the hand is manifested by the following symptoms: swelling, blue discoloration or redness of the bruise site, severe pain when moving the finger, blood clots, abnormal mobility of the injured finger.
Sprains of the finger bands occur more frequently with sharp movement of the joint, which is observed in athletes, overly agile people, and children.
Tendinitis
The disease affects a person who constantly performs monotonous movements (sewing, typing, playing the piano). The "writing" spasm occurs due to daily stress as you type. Painful syndrome is observed in people with cervical osteochondrosis. Wrist pain is especially felt at night. Painful feelings are often accompanied by a crunch-like sound.
The tingling and numbness of the fingers is manifested in the fact that the person makes small movements with his hands. Repeated overexertion of the hand contributes to the appearance of snap finger syndrome. The bent finger is difficult to straighten; if you apply force to stretch, you will hear a click.
Feelings of pain with internal pathologies
Often pain in the hand and fingers for reasons unrelated to joint disease. People with pathologies are at risk. Cardiac ischemia. In the case of a heart attack, the onset of the attack often coincides with pain and tingling in the left hand. Diabetes. The pathology leads to a more sensitive state due to circulatory disorders.
Painful feelings and numbness are often observed in pregnant women. The following changes lead to swelling and pain in the joints of the fingers during pregnancy: increased levels of the hormone relaxin, calcium deficiency, damage to the middle nerve, depression.
Important!Heredity, freezing of hands, frequent immersion in cold water, decreased immunity contribute to pathological changes in the hand.
Pain in the fingers of the right hand
Several fingers hurt at once. Half of the painful manifestations occur on the ring finger and little finger, and a third on the index and thumb. If the pain is felt in all fingers of the right hand, the problem is vascular. Pain in the index finger and thumb indicates pathology of the spine. If the index finger, ring finger, and thumb hurt at the same time, this indicates disease of the radial nerve. Simultaneous pain of the little finger and ring finger indicates the presence of a foraminal hernia.
The fingers of the left hand hurt
If the pain only occurs in each finger of the left hand, the problem should be looked for in the blood vessels. The thumb, forefinger, and ring finger hurt — the radial or middle nerve is affected, and the forefinger and thumb are pathologies of the spine. Pain in the little finger and ring finger is manifested by a C5-C6 foraminal hernia. The middle finger joint hurts with a foraminal hernia C4-C5.
Which professional to choose
Whatever the cause of your hand pain, a visit to the doctor is mandatory. In case of post-traumatic pain, it is advisable to make an appointment with a traumatologist. If the joints become inflamed and swollen, the rheumatologist will help. If the cause of the pain is not clear, consult a cardiologist and endocrinologist.
Diagnostics
Pathologies can be diagnosed with the following hardware tests:
- Radiography. The painless procedure allows examination of the bone tissue. The research results are recorded in 3 projections on the film.
- CT. The examination is performed by X-rays. The results obtained after computer processing are a series of cross-sectional images.
- Electrospondilography. It reveals the presence of abnormalities in the part of the spine that is responsible for the operation of the hands. Pathology is detected in the early stages of development.
- MRI. Diagnosis is made by electromagnetic radiation. As a result of the examination, longitudinal and cross-sectional images are taken.
The X-ray method is considered to be the most informative in bone tissue pathologies.
Laboratory methods
Tests for the diagnosis of joint pathology are performed:
- General urine analysis. It allows the identification of advanced forms of osteitis.
- General blood test. The test determines the presence of leukocytosis and anemia.
- Biochemical blood test. It determines the increased presence of fibrinogen, sialic acid.
- Thrust. After puncture of the affected joint, the fluid in it is examined. The purpose of the test is to determine the exact cause of the pathology; in rare cases.
- Biopsy. A piece of skin tissue is taken for microscopic examination. The method can be used to detect lupus erythematosus, scleroderma.
Treatment
Hand pain is treated depending on the cause. NSAIDs are used to worsen arthritis. The use of vasodilators is necessary for the normal supply of blood to the joints. Ointments and gels are used for topical therapy. Good results have been obtained in the treatment of arthritis by ultrasound, electrophoresis and acupuncture.
In osteoarthritis, central painkillers are prescribed to relieve the patient of acute pain. In addition to analgesia, the drugs also have an anti-inflammatory effect. In some cases, chondroprotectors are taken continuously. Laser treatment has been used successfully in the treatment of osteoarthritis. Significant relief can be achieved by using physiotherapy procedures: massage, mud therapy.
In the case of gout, medication is recommended to normalize the metabolism of purines in the body. Painkillers are prescribed to relieve pain. Diets that limit the consumption of meat products, fish and alcohol are especially important. Rheumatoid arthritis cannot be cured, but anti-inflammatory drugs, physiotherapy and surgical methods can slow down the destructive process of the joint. Acupuncture and massage have also worked well.
A comfortable work environment should be created to deal with tunnel syndrome, taking into account the correct position of the hand. In case of painful sensations, a compress is made from the decoction of chamomile.
Surgical methods
If conservative treatment is ineffective, the joint is replaced by surgery. The indications for surgery are as follows:
- Injuries due to tendon detachment from the point of attachment to the nail phalanx.
- Arthritis of the hand.
- Fractures and cracks.
- Deep cuts.
- Malignant neoplasms of the hand.
How to cure according to folk recipes
Effective folk recipes for the treatment of hand pain:
- Recipe # 1. Aloe ointment. Take 20 g of chopped fresh aloe leaves, add 5 g of dry mustard. Mix and simmer for 8-10 minutes until a homogeneous mass is obtained. Transfer to a container without access to light. Brush the bandages in the morning and evening until no visible improvement occurs.
- Recipe # 2. Bird cherry tincture. Pour 50 g of bird cherry crust into 200 ml of vodka. Insist for 10 days without access to light. Lubricate the brush three times a day. The duration of treatment is 3 weeks.
- Recipe # 3. Bath with marigolds. Pour a tablespoon of dried calendula into 200 ml of boiling water. The broth is prepared for 15 minutes. on low flame. Treatment procedures continue - 20 minutes. The treatment process is 10 procedures.
- Recipe # 4. Drinking dandelion root. So 1 tablespoon of dandelion root is poured into 200 ml of boiling water. Simmer for 20 minutes. Drink 1 tablespoon 15 minutes before meals for 14 days.
- Recipe # 5. Heat three tablespoons of sea salt in the microwave. Wrapped in a gauze bandage, placed on the joint, held for 30 minutes.
The procedures are performed for 20 days per day.
Useful tips
By following the recommendations of doctors, you can significantly help your body relieve joint disease. If you experience swelling in the brushes, remove the jewelry. In case of injury, keep the hand still and apply a cold compress. In the case of pain caused by exertion, these should be ruled out or significantly reduced. You need to change jobs that require repetitive movements.
Contact your doctor immediately if you notice any of the following symptoms:
- Post-traumatic pain persists, stiffness of movement is observed, and the finger is difficult to bend.
- The brush is reddened and warm on the skin.
- Tingling sensation in hand.
- The wall of the fingers hurts.
- The brush or finger becomes numb.
It is advisable to exclude smoking, caffeine, which leads to narrowing of the blood vessels, does not give the right amount of blood to the hand.
Prophylaxis
To prevent a handache, you need to do the following:
- Include exercises to strengthen your hand muscles in your morning exercise complex.
- If you need to perform repetitive movements, take breaks.
- A prolonged position in a position that requires a fixed position of the hands should be excluded.
- Avoid hand hypothermia.
Hand pain is caused by various causes. Medications, physiotherapy, surgical techniques, and folk prescriptions are used to relieve pain. To improve your quality of life, it is important to follow your doctor's recommendations.