Wrist Pain - Know The Most Common Reasons!

We all experience minor medical issues like pain in the fingers, arms or wrists from time to time. Over exerting any part of the body and stress that area and lead to inflammation or tenderness. One of these most commonly used parts of the body are wrists. Any disease or injury involving the bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments may also lead to wrist pain.

The wrist is a complicated joint composed of eight small bony structures which are arranged in rows lying between the bones of the forearm and hand. Tough bands of ligament connecting the wrist bones to each other and the bones of hand and forearm may become damaged and cause wrist pain. Here are some of the most prevalent causes of wrist pain.

Injuries-
Sudden impact injuries often take place when a person falls forward on the outstretched hand. This may lead to strains, sprains, and even fractures. A scaphoid fracture involving a bone on the thumb side of the wrist may not be visible on X-rays right after the injury but cause immense pain.

Any activity involving repetitive motion of the wrist can inflame the tissues present in the joints and lead to stress fractures. This applies in particular when you perform any movement for long hours without any break. This disease is known as De Quervain’s disease and is a form of repetitive stress injury which leads to pain at the base of the thumb.

Diseases Affecting The Wrist-
Many diseases and complications may cause a problem in the wrist, and some of them include the following:

1. Arthritis: An osteoarthritis is a common form of arthritis which takes place when the cartilage cushioning the ends of the bones damage over time. This type of arthritis occurs only in individuals who have injuries in the wrist. Another form of arthritis is rheumatoid arthritis where the immune system of the body attacks its tissues. If one wrist is affected, the other one gets affected as well.
2. Kienbock’s disease: This type of disorder generally affects young adults and involves the collapse of one or more small bones in the wrist. It takes place when the blood supply to the bone is hampered.
3. Ganglion cysts: It is a type of soft tissue cysts which typically affects the part of the cyst opposite to the palm. Smaller ganglion cysts tend to cause more pain than larger ones.
4. Carpal tunnel syndrome: It develops when there is too much pressure on the median nerve since it passes through the carpal tunnel which is a passageway on the palm side of the wrist.

Wrist pain may affect an individual of any age regardless of whether he leads an active or sedentary lifestyle. But some people are more at risk than others. Wrist injuries are a common occurrence in sports like bowling, golf, gymnastics, and tennis. Repetitive work that involves the working of hand and wrist may also lead to wrist pain. Other conditions such as obesity, pregnancy, and diabetes may lead to wrist pain as well.
Hence, necessary precautions should be taken in such circumstances to prevent this issue.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!