An acute injury, arthritis, gout, and carpal tunnel syndrome can cause your wrist to hurt. Wrist pain and discomfort can make even the simplest tasks, like clapping, typing, and buttoning your shirt, feel impossible.
Fortunately, there are several options available for finding relief from wrist pain. Let’s talk about various options for finding relief from wrist pain when you should see an orthopedic doctor, and how an orthopedic doctor can provide you relief.
At-Home Strategies That Can Help Relieve Wrist Pain
You can find relief from wrist pain from a combination of the following at-home measures.
Rest and Protect
Certain repetitive activities can bring on wrist pain or make the existing pain worse. So, take a break from all the activities that you think are contributing to your wrist pain or are making your pain worse.
Wearing a wrist brace or splint is also advisable to ease wrist pain and swelling.
Apply Hot or Cold Compress
Ice packs can help reduce wrist inflammation and ease pain, while a warm compress can promote blood flow, which can reduce pain and speed up the healing process.
So, apply warm and cold compress alternatively to your painful wrist for at least 3 days or until you find relief.
Oral Pain Medications
Pain that persists even after rest and ice and heat therapy can be relieved with over-the-counter pain medications. So, take OTC pain relivers like naproxen (Aleve) and ibuprofen (Advil).
Do not take ibuprofen in the first two days following an injury, as ibuprofen can slow down the healing process.
Signs You Should See an Orthopedic Doctor for Wrist Pain
See an orthopedic right away if:
- Your wrist is warm and red
- Your wrist pain last longer than a few days or get worse
- You have a temperature over 100.4 °F, along with wrist pain
- You are unable to move your wrist
- Your hand and wrist look abnormal, particularly after an acute injury
Your orthopedic doctor will discuss your medical history and symptoms with you and may order some tests like X-rays, MRI, CT scans, etc. These tests will help the doctor determine the underlying cause of your wrist pain.
Once the cause of your wrist pain is known, your orthopedic doctor will treat your wrist pain based on the type, location, and severity of the injury or condition, as well as on your age and overall health.
Your orthopedic doctor may use the following interventions to relieve your wrist pain.
Medications
Your orthopedic doctor may recommend strong pain relievers that are available by prescription. Additionally, they may also inject corticosteroids into your wrist to fight inflammation and alleviate pain.
Physical Therapy
Wrist pain caused by tendon problems or injuries can be relieved with physical therapy. Your physical therapist will implement specific treatments and exercises to help ease pain, speed up healing and regain wrist mobility.
Surgery
Surgery is typically performed when pain is due to wrist fracture, ruptured tendon or ligament, or carpal tunnel syndrome.
During surgery, fractured bone pieces are aligned, torn tendon or ligament is repaired, or in case of conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome, the pressure on the median nerve is released.
Wrist Pain in Bismarck, ND
If you fail to find relief in at-home measures, consider seeing our orthopedic doctor at The Bone & Joint Center. Our three board-certified orthopedic doctors, Dr. Duncan Ackerman, Dr. Brock Norrie, and Dr. Troy Pierce, specialize in providing exceptional care for conditions and injuries of the upper extremities. Our wrist doctor offers both surgical and nonsurgical treatments to address the unique cause of your wrist pain.
If you would like to set up a consultation with our wrist doctor, contact us today at (701) 946-7400 / (866) 900-8650 or use our convenient online request form.
