How Do You Treat Arthritis In Your Hands

What Are The Symptoms Of Arthritis In The Hands

Early symptoms include:

• Dull or burning joint pain, appearing hours or a day after increased use of your hands.
• Morning pain and stiffness in your hand.
• Swollen joints in your hand.

If you’ve had arthritis in your hand for some time:

• Symptoms are present more often.
• Pain may change from dull ache to sharp pain.
• Pain may wake you up at night.
• Pain may cause you to change the way you use your hand.
• Tissue surrounding your affected joint may become red and tender to the touch.
• Youll feel grating, grinding, cracking or clicking when bending your fingers.
• Your fingers cant fully open and close.
• Small bony nodules form on the middle joint of your fingers or at the top joints of your fingers .
• Your finger joints become large and deformed and abnormally bent, leaving your hands weak and less able to accomplish everyday tasks.

Exercises To Relieve Arthritis

The following exercises increase blood flow to cartilage, bringing it the nutrients it needs to stay healthy and prevent further breakdown. Consult your healthcare provider before starting these exercises to make sure theyre appropriate for you.

If so, the exercises are easy to do and can ease your arthritis pain:

The stronger your muscles are, the more weight they will be able to handle. Like other types of exercise, hand exercises won’t “work” overnight. But they should with time and repetition.

How Common Is Arthritis

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention more than 54 million U.S. adults have arthritis. For about half of those people, arthritis limits their activities.

About 15 million people experience arthritis-related severe joint pain.

Arthritis is more common among women than men, and risk often increases with age.

Arthritis is also commonly diagnosed among those with other chronic diseases, like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, and can make it more difficult for people to manage these chronic conditions.

Don’t Miss: How To Ease Arthritis Pain In Hands

What Is A Knee Doctor Called

Orthopedic doctors have the specialized knowledge and training needed to treat a wide variety of problems affecting the musculoskeletal system bones, joints, cartilage, muscles, and nerves including the knees. Orthopedic doctors can treat acute and chronic knee pain and improve your quality of life.

What Outcome Can I Expect If I Have Arthritis In My Hands

There is no cure for arthritis. However, you can usually manage mild to moderate symptoms with a combination of medication and non-medication approaches. Surgery may be an option if other treatments fail or the arthritis in your hands is severe. Your healthcare provider will explain what outcome you can expect for your type and severity of arthritis, your age, other existing medical conditions and other factors.

You May Like: Does Rheumatoid Arthritis Cause Headaches

What Kind Of Doctor Do I See For Arthritis In My Hands

An orthopedic hand specialist is trained and knowledgeable in various treatments that can ease the symptoms of arthritis in the hands and wrists. A hand specialist who is also a hand surgeon can perform surgical procedures that can help repair damaged joints and tendons in the hand due to arthritis.

Treatments For Arthritis Of The Hands

Osteoarthritis in the hands is the most common form of the condition. In fact, symptoms occur in nearly all women over the age of 70. It develops when the cartilage in the fingers and hand joints begins to break down, causing pain, inflammation and stiffness in the joints, particularly in the thumb. Aching hands can be severely detrimental to quality of life, costing some jobs or hobbies. Here are nine options to help treat arthritis in your hands.

Also Check: What Kind Of Doctor Do You See For Arthritis

Why Go To A Hand Specialist For Arthritis

Painful and swollen hands are the first signs of arthritis. Arthritis can affect any part of your body, even the joints in your hands. It can make simple tasks like holding up a glass or mug, brushing your teeth, or turning a doorknob difficult.

While there is no cure for arthritis, you can manage symptoms and slow down the degeneration of your joints. Arthritis sufferers who get treatment and guidance from orthopedic doctors can live normal lives despite their condition.

An orthopedic hand specialist is trained and knowledgeable in various treatments that can ease the symptoms of arthritis in the hands and wrists. A hand specialist who is also a hand surgeon can perform surgical procedures that can help repair damaged joints and tendons in the hand due to arthritis.

Treatment For Hand Arthritis In The Greater Chesapeake

If you have a hand injury or chronic condition such as arthritis, turn to the experts at Greater Chesapeake Hand to Shoulder. Our team of hand experts have a profound understanding of the complex networks of blood vessels, nerves, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and bones that make up the hand and fingers.

We understand how important pain-free hand and finger motion and function is to daily activities, including work, self-care, sports, and leisure. Our orthopedic and plastic surgeons specialize in hand surgery, and we can offer state-of-the-art nonsurgical and surgical care to treat a full range of hand and finger injuries and conditions.

Call us today to schedule a consultation with our at or request an appointment online now for any of our Greater Chesapeake locations. We look forward to helping you feel less pain in your hands and regain hand motion and function, so you can get back to doing what you love.

Also Check: How Do You Know You Have Arthritis In Your Hip

Hand Osteoarthritis Causes And Risk Factors

Osteoarthritis was once thought to happen because of wear and tear on your joints. Doctors now know thereâs more to the story.

On the ends of your bones, there’s a layer of smooth material called cartilage. It helps cushion your joints and allows them to slide easily. But over time, the cartilage gets worn down. The bones rub against each other, causing the symptoms of OA. The wear and tear can also cause other tissues in the joint to make inflammatory cells, which damage it more.

Certain things can make you more likely to have hand OA:

• Age. The older you are, the higher your odds.
• Sex. Compared with men, women are twice as likely to get it.
• Ethnicity. Rates are lower in African Americans.
• Weight. Thinner people are less likely to get it than those who have obesity.
• Injuries. This includes broken and dislocated bones.
• Changes in your genes. Your parents might have passed down a higher chance of OA.
• Joint problems. This includes infections, loose ligaments, overuse, and joints that arenât aligned the way they should be.

What causes flare-ups?

How To Prevent And Manage Arthritis In The Hands

There is no known cure for arthritis, which commonly affects the hands. However, a person can take steps to lower the risk of arthritis developing or worsening and to reduce and manage pain. These steps include practicing specific exercises and making dietary changes and adjustments to daily habits.

Arthritis is a general term that describes several conditions that affect a persons joints. There are more than 100 different types of arthritis. Arthritis is generally not preventable, but a person may be able to reduce their risk by changing the risk factors that they can control.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , the most common type of arthritis in the United States is osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis can affect nearly any joint in the body, but it most commonly affects the joints in the knees, hips, and hands.

This article discusses how to reduce the risk of developing arthritis in the hands or prevent it from worsening. It also explains how to reduce and manage the pain of arthritis.

Also Check: Is Sugar Bad For Rheumatoid Arthritis

Medical Treatment For Arthritis In The Hands

Medical treatment for arthritis in the hands mainly aims at managing the symptoms. This may include:

• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen or naproxen to relieve pain
• Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs to slow down the progression of the condition if you are diagnosed with RA
• Steroids to manage inflammation
• Cortisone injection to alleviate pain and inflammation

In addition to availing medical treatment for arthritis in the hands, you can also try out home remedies to manage the symptoms.

Treatment Of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Treatment is designed to relieve pain and restore function. If you have rheumatoid arthritis in your hands, medications can help decrease inflammation, relieve pain and slow the progression of the disease. Anti-inflammatory medications, oral steroids, and/or cortisone injections may be used. Several disease-modifying treatments are now available, including anti-malarial drugs, methotrexate, cyclosporine, gold, and other new drugs that help suppress the bodys immune system to reduce the inflammation and pain. A rheumatologist will often prescribe and monitor these types of medications. Your physician may also refer you to a hand therapist for exercises, splints, treatments such as paraffin baths, and instruction on how to use your hands in ways that may help relieve pain and pressure and also protect your joints. Adaptive devices may help you cope with the activities of daily living.

Surgery to treat the arthritic joints includes removal of inflamed joint linings, joint replacements, joint fusions, and in some cases, removal of damaged bone. The specific procedure depends on a variety of factors, including the particular joint involved, the degree of damage present, the condition of adjacent joints, and your own needs. Your hand surgeon can help you decide on the most appropriate treatment for you.

Don’t Miss: What Does Arthritis Pain Feel Like In Hands

Managing Hand And Wrist Pain

Research shows it is effective for providing symptom relief for people with carpal tunnel syndrome, a condition that causes numbness, tingling, and pain in the hand because of a squeezed nerve in the wrist.

A study reported in 2017 in the journal Brain found people with carpal tunnel can experience improvements in pain and numbness using acupuncture. In addition, researchers suggested acupuncturewhen done correctlycan also offer long-term benefits and continued improvements in hand function.

These findings could hold promise for hand pain associated with arthritis.

Who Gets Arthritis In Their Hands

You are more likely to get arthritis in your hands if:

• Youre older. Osteoarthritis is commonly seen after age 50. Rheumatoid arthritis typically first appears between the age of 35 and 50.
• Youre a woman.
• Youre overweight.
• Youve had previous injuries to your hand. If youve dislocated or broken any joints in your hands or fingers, you are more likely to develop arthritis.
• You’ve inherited genes that cause the development of arthritis.

Read Also: What Diet Is Good For Arthritis

Simple Ways To Manage Hand Osteoarthritis

When osteoarthritis affects your hands, everyday activities such as opening jars and using a cell phone can be difficult. Arthritic joints in the hands or wrists may be painful, stiff, and weaker than normal. Thankfully, there are many ways to help manage this condition.

Osteoarthritis in the hand or wrist joints can make it hard to open jars or grip objects. SeeRecognizing Osteoarthritis in the Hand

Read on to learn 5 simple strategies for coping with osteoarthritic pain in the hand.

What Type Of Hand Surgery Is Most Commonly Performed On The Specific Joints Affected By Arthritis

• Base of the thumb: Where your thumb and wrist join. Common surgical options include removing part or all of one of the trapezium bone , tendon transfer or joint fusion.
• Knuckles : Joint replacement is almost always considered for this repair. Rheumatoid arthritis can cause serious damage and disability to your knuckles.
• Second joint of your finger : Osteoarthritis commonly causes stiffness and loss of motion. Joint replacement or fusion are considered for these joints. Because you use these joints frequently, there is a chance your implant could wear out. In this case, your provider may recommend further surgery.
• Top of finger joint : Joint fusion is commonly used to treat arthritis in this joint.

Read Also: Can I Get Arthritis In My Feet

What Is The Best Doctor To See For Osteoarthritis

Rheumatologists Rheumatologists specialize in musculoskeletal diseases and autoimmune conditions. They treat all types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis. If there’s a chance you have something other than osteoarthritis, you will be sent to a rheumatologist.

How To Treat Osteoarthritis

The goals in treating osteoarthritis are to relieve pain and restore function. Brief rest either by changing activities or wearing a splint can help. Soft, snug sleeves can help support a joint when rigid splints are too restrictive. Heat can soothe the joints and help keep them mobile. It is important to keep as much finger motion and function as possible. Hand therapists can teach joint protection exercises and activity modification to help protect joints. Anti-inflammatory medication or a steroid injection into the joint can decrease pain, but neither cures osteoarthritis.

Surgery is considered when the non-surgical options above have not helped. In most cases, you will tell your doctor when you are ready for surgery. The goal is to restore as much function as possible and to minimize your pain. One type of surgery is joint fusion. The worn cartilage is removed and the bones on each side of the joint are fused together, which means that the joint will not move but it will not hurt. Another choice is joint reconstruction, where the rough joint surface is removed and either replaced with your own soft tissue or with an implant. The type of surgery depends on the joint involved, your anatomy, and your activities. Your hand surgeon can help you decide which type of surgery is the best for you.

This content is written, edited and updated by hand surgeon members of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand.Find a hand surgeon near you.

Also Check: How Can I Prevent Arthritis

Occupational Therapy Eases Pain And Improves Function When Osteoarthritis Occurs In The Joint Connecting Thumb And Wrist

When it comes to arthritis, some joints seem to get all the attention. We talk about knees and hips an awful lot. Our knees and hips must work well for walking, and a third or more of adults over age 65 develop osteoarthritis in these joints, resulting in over a million joint replacements in the US each year.

But what about the first carpometacarpal joint that connects your thumb to your wrist? Thats surprisingly important, yet most people cant name it and only become aware of it once it becomes arthritic. Fortunately, research recently confirmed that a common therapy requiring no medication can effectively treat this type of arthritis.

More Tips For Your Hands

Moving your hands and fingers can help keep your ligaments and tendons flexible and increase the function of synovial fluid. Try regular hand exercises to strengthen muscles and relieve stiffness and pain. Simple exercises like flexing and bending, finger touching, and finger sliding may help keep your fingers limber.

Staying physically active while at the same time taking extra precautions against injury is vital not only for preventing arthritis, but also for your overall physical health.

Also Check: Is Lemon Good For Arthritis

Osteoarthritis Of The Hand Fact Sheet

Weight Management And Diet

Although the link between your weight and osteoarthritis of the hands may be less clear than for weight-bearing joints such as the knees, some research shows that being overweight increases inflammation and therefore pain. Therefore, if you have osteoarthritis of the hand or wrist, it still makes sense to try to maintain, or achieve, a healthy weight.

Read Also: How Do I Stop Arthritis

How To Diagnose Arthritis In The Hands

Your doctor may rely on medical history, physical examination, and blood and imaging tests to determine the diagnosis.

• Physical examination: Swelling of the hands feels harder in osteoarthritis , whereas it is softer in rheumatoid arthritis .
• Blood test: It is performed to detect the presence of antibodies such as rheumatoid factor or anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide that help identify RA and other types of inflammatory arthritis.
• Imaging test:X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging scans may reveal joint erosion in RA and the presence of osteophytes and loss of cartilage in OA.

What Is A Bone Doctor Called

Orthopedic Surgeons 101 Orthopedic surgeons are doctors who specialize in the musculoskeletal system – the bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, and muscles that are so essential to movement and everyday life. With more than 200 bones in the human body, it’s an in-demand specialty. Dislocated joints. Hip or back pain.

Don’t Miss: Does Rheumatoid Arthritis Cause Fever

What Is Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, and the hand and wrist joints are among the most commonly affected. A joint is a part of the body where two or more bones meet. The ends of the bones are covered in a smooth and slippery surface, known as cartilage. This allows the bones to move smoothly against each other and protects the joint from stress.

Everyone’s joints go through a cycle of damage and repair, and often the repair process is quite effective. But sometimes it can cause changes in the shape or structure of the joints.

Osteoarthritis causes the cartilage in your joints to thin and the surfaces of the joint to become rougher, which means that the joints may not move as smoothly as they should, and they might feel painful and stiff.

You may have firm, knobbly swellings at the finger joints. These are known as Heberden’s nodes or Bouchard’s nodes depending on which joints are affected. They’re caused by the growth of bony spurs called osteophytes.

Osteoarthritis can affect anyone at any age, but it’s more common in women over the age of 50.

Some of the factors that can make you more likely to develop osteoarthritis in your hands include:

• carrying out repetitive tasks over a long period of time.