Pain In Your Hands, Wrists, Or Elbows? Here’s What May Be Causing It

Pain In Your Hands, Wrists, Or Elbows? 

Here’s What May Be Causing It

Think about how often you use your hands. You need them to cook and eat meals, brush your hair, get dressed, take care of your pets, send a text message – the list is endless! Now, imagine you’re dealing with pain in your wrist or hands. It’ll have a big impact on your daily life, won’t it?

That’s why pain or injuries in your hands, wrists, and elbows can be incredibly debilitating — we use those three body parts so much throughout our day, often without realizing it. That’s also why it’s so important to resolve the underlying cause of the pain, which is the approach we take at Vibrant Health Solutions.

Our multidisciplinary team doesn’t want to mask your symptoms. We want to eliminate the pain or injury completely. To accomplish that, we take the time to learn about your symptoms and recovery goals, work to pinpoint why you’re hurting, and create an integrated care plan that meets your unique needs.

Today, we want to explore some of the common sources of hand, wrist, or elbow pain and what you can do to address them. If you’d like more personalized guidance, schedule an appointment with us today!

Repetitive Strain Injuries 

Repeated motions, such as typing, texting, or playing musical instruments, can strain the muscles, tendons, or nerves in the small joints of your upper extremities, leading to inflammation and pain. 

Sports Injuries

Any sport that involves big swinging or overhead motions – such as tennis, golf, or swimming – puts you at risk for injury in your upper extremities. Two prevalent sports injuries (lateral or medial epicondylitis) both affect the elbow. You probably know them by their common names: tennis elbow or golfer’s elbow.

These injuries generally develop due to overuse or poor posture that strains the tendons that attach to the elbow, causing pain and weakness. 

Fractures and Sprains

The previous causes listed here typically develop over time, so the onset of their symptoms happens gradually. However, you can suffer acute injuries to your hand, wrist, or elbow – namely strains (in which the ligament stretches or tears) or fractures (in which a bone breaks).

These injuries generally result from falling on an outstretched hand and typically require immediate medical care. That said, you will need rehabilitation to restore function.

Arthritis

Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis (the two most common types) often affect joints in the hands and wrists, leading to pain, stiffness, and swelling. In fact, rheumatoid arthritis often begins in small joints like the hands.

While arthritis has no cure, you can slow its progression and manage your symptoms to minimize their impact on your daily life.

Nerve Compression

Nerve compression syndromes occur when nerves in the elbow or wrist become entrapped, resulting in pain, numbness, and tingling in the hand and fingers. If left untreated, you might also experience reduced fine motor skills.

Two common examples of nerve compression are carpal tunnel syndrome (in which the median nerve becomes trapped in the wrist) and cubital tunnel syndrome (in which the ulnar nerve becomes trapped in the elbow)