Treatment for Sore Wrist Prevent Future Pain

By Tom Nicholson

All too often, we take our wrists for granted along with the abilities that these intricate parts of our anatomy provide for us in our daily lives, from carrying our bags to working at the computer. As many sports coaches will tell you, it's all in the wrist!

If you have ever suffered a sore wrist, you know the importance of this body part. If left ignored, the problem may become worse over time. It may even affect the future quality of life if it turns into a chronic problem. Simple tasks may become overwhelming with a tender wrist, and the over the counter pain relief is not safe for the long term. Getting help to deal with the pain is important.

Pain that start small may get worse over time. A tender or sore wrist is possibly an indicator of a worse problem. Possibilities include gout, arthritis, carpal tunnel, cysts, sprains or fractures. Having a medical professional evaluate you as soon as possible can head off future problems. When treating your wrist, you may be told to use the RICE method.

For another thing, your tender wrist can degenerate into something worse. Your painful wrist may be the precursor and/or the symptom of medical conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritis, gout and pseudo-gout, tendonitis, ganglion cysts and bone fractures and muscle sprains. You definitely will want to treat these disorders as soon as possible.

When beginning at home treatments for your sore wrist, the primary goals are to relieve pain, promote healing and avoid a recurring incidence of injury. This at home treatment will apply to most cases from a wrist injury related to repetitive stress injury or arthritis related pain.

When performing at-home treatments for a sore wrist, your primary goal is to relieve the pain felt, promote the healing of the injury, and avoid the recurrence of said injury. This self-care treatment applies to almost all cases from repetitive stress injury to wrist trauma to arthritis-related wrist pain. * R stands for rest coupled with activity modification. You have to provide adequate rest for your injured wrist for at least 24-48 hours, which is called the critical period. Usually, your wrist will be encased in protective sheaths like a splint and/or sling. Plus, you have to modify your activities such that stress on the sore wrist is minimized during this period.

Ice and heat treatments may also help alleviate pain. Generally, you will use ice for an acute injury, and heat for a chronic condition. When using ice packs, limit use to 20 minutes per application.

Compression is wrapping the injury to provide stability. The bandaging should be applied so the area does not turn blue or become cold. The doctor may also elect to give a cortisone shot to provide steroids for the muscles to heal.

Elevating the wrist above the heart is also another good method for dealing with wrist pain. Use a sling during the day, and during the night, elevate with a pillow.

Keep in mind that the RICE treatment protocol is applicable for first aid and after-care situations. As soon as you feel that your injured wrist is not responding to the RICE treatment, you must seek medical advice at once.

Indeed, a sore wrist may not look like much to worry about today but you have to be very careful that tomorrow, it will be as good as new. After all, your life may very well depend on how well your wrist works with and for you.

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