De Quervain's tenosynovitis is a painful condition in which the tendons around the base of your thumb become swollen. Thus it directly affects the tendons in your wrist. The thing is, swelling causes the sheaths or the casing to become inflated. These sheaths provide covering to tendons, so the pressure is exerted on the nearby nerves. This causes numbness and pain.
When it comes to its treatment, de Quervain's home remedy is the one that you must initially go with. There are many ways of treating de Quervain's tenosynovitis at home itself. Some of the best among those are.
-
Avoiding activities:
There are many activities that cause pain. Activities that especially involve your wrist and hand movements for a prolonged period of time like playing golf, badminton, or doing other household work can cause both pain and swelling. Preventing such activities can benefit you a lot. -
Ice:
Ice therapy is one of the effective ways to reduce inflammation and numb pain signals. It is beneficial in the treatment of de Quervain's tenosynovitis. You simply need to ice the affected area for about 10-15 minutes several times a day. This will help you a lot. Keep one thing in mind you don't have to apply the ice directly on the skin. It can cause burns. -
Splint /Brace:
You can go with a splint/brace. This will help to immobilize the thumb. You can wear it 24 hours a day. Wearing it for about 4-6 weeks will aid you a lot in recovery. -
NSAIDs
You can go with pain medications on the recommendation of a doctor. They will help you a lot in getting rid of both pain and swelling. -
Steroid injections:
If you are not able to get proper relief from medications, you will be given an injection by a doctor into the tendon sheath. In most cases, it proves to be beneficial. This carries a high recovery rate. A study on the same shows that out of 80, 95% of patients were found to have symptoms free when they are treated with 2-3 injections over a course of 6 weeks. -
Exercises:
If you don't want to get involved in medications and injections, exercise can do the job for you. Here are a few exercises that are effective in the treatment of de Quervain's tenosynovitis.
- Place your affected hand palm down on any flat surface. Then take the help of your other hand to gently move the affected thumb away. Then replace it slowly and smoothly. You have to go with this movement 5-10 times.
- Keep your affected hand sideways, little finger first on any flat surface. Then use your other hand to move the affected thumb away from the fingers. Then you have to bring it back in line with them. Repeat this movement 5 to 10 times.
- Place your affected hand flat on the table with your palm first. Now keep your hand still and move your thumb out to the side. You have to move your thumb to the level you feel comfortable. Once done, return to the original position. Repeat this about 5 to 10 times.
- Keep your palm on the table and lift the thumb as far away from the surface as you feel comfortable. One done brings it back to its original position. Keep doing this about 5-10 times. You can also increase the repetition once you start feeling comfortable.
- Put an elastic band around the fingers and thumb. Then move your thumb against the resistance. Repeat this movement 10 times.
- Keep your affected hand on the table with your palm up. Then you have to touch the top of the thumb to the little finger. Hold this stretching position for about 5-6 seconds and repeat the same about 10 times.
- Hold the affected arm out in the front, and use your other hand to press down the back of the hand. Your wrist should be stretched. Hold this stretched position for about 15-30 seconds and repeat this movement 3 times. To increase the impact, stretch the wrist in another direction.
- Hold a Can in the affected hand with your palm facing up. Now lower the weight and return to the starting position. You have to go for 2 sets of 15 reps each.
- Take a soft rubber ball and strengthen the grip by squeezing it. Hold this stretch for about 5 seconds. You have to go with 2 sets, each containing 15 reps.
Conclusion:
When it comes to de Quervain's tenosynovitis, there are many effective ways to treat it without surgery. All you need is, to have proper guidance. If you are looking forward to its treatment at home itself, you can do this through physical therapy ( At home physiotherapy services.) Some of the techniques for the same are presented to you here in this resolute dossier. But it is advised to have a therapist by your side for effective recovery.[button color="transparent_credi" size="medium" class = "custom_button" link="https://www.credihealth.com/medical-assistance?utm_source=blog_acnetreat&utm_medium=bottom_button&utm_campaign=book_appointment" icon="" target="true"]Request Callback [/button]
Reviewed by
