I think I have it in my thumb. I thought it was arthritis at first, but I'm only 43. The more I read about it, I think it may be tendonitis.

It's happened 3 or 4 times, this time being the longest lasting and the worst hurting. Today is the 5th day. My thumb joint where it hooks on to my hand just aches. I can't grasp and lift anything with any weight to it. I am trying to baby it, but by the end of the day or if I do something before thinking about it, it aches clear up into my forearm.

From what I've read, the doctor doesn't really do anything for it other than ibprofin and a splint. I've taken tylenol & advil and neither really did anything. I don't have a splint but like I said I'm trying to baby it as much as possible.

Is there anything else you can do for it? How long to these outbreaks usually take before they quit hurting? I don't know that seeing the doctor will accomplish anything.

Lisa

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Have you tried icing it? A doctor could determine whether it really is tendinitis. My husband had something similar in his thumb. It turned out to be some type of shortening of the tendon. He found that playing the piano helped it a lot. So it might help more if your thumb got exercise instead of being babied. Only a doctor could tell you for sure, though. I had tendinitis in my shoulder and a few rounds of steroids helped a lot.

I've had tendinitis in my wrists since 1992. In my case it doesn't get better, I just have good days (fairly pain free) and bad ones (where in the morning I'm lucky I can make a fist). I've started taking Aleve when it gets really bad.

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Sounds like gout or as its called now adays gouty arthritis. It usually comes from rich food or alcohol. It is too much acid in the urine.

I had tendonitis in my forearm/wrist area once. I had to wear one of those wrist imobilizers for 10 days. Ice and ibuprofen. You really can't use it or it won't get better. My DD also had tendonitis in her foot from pitching (after she had had appendicitis and couldn't pitch for 6 weeks) she started pitching again and overdid it and got tendonitis in the arch of her foot. Same treatment, ice, ibuprofen and the doctor wrapped it with an ace bandage, no use for 3-4 days at all, so she was on crutches, she was fine after 3-4 days being off of it.

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Thanks for all the suggestions. It's now hurting in my wrist. It's been 7 days and no better, so I called the doctor. They can't get me in until Friday, but from what we talked about she said she doesn't think it's gout. She told me 3 Ibprofens and ice as needed. I'll update when I know something.

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

I also use Icy hot on it.

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Are you sure cortisone can't be used in this situation? I have had horrible tendonitis in both of my elbows, suffered or about 8 years, several cortisone shots later & I had to have surgery to repair both arms, it was by far the most agonizing surgery I've ever endured! It took me 3 weeks just to be able to touch the top o myt head & over a year to be back 80%. I still use my wrist braces on occassion & it's been about 3 yrs. since surgeries.

R.I.C.E.
Rest
Ice
Compression
Elevation

Anti-inflammatories---Ibuprofen. In some instances-corticosteroids, either oral or injected into the joint. Sometimes the injections also include a "caine"(marcaine, lidocaine, etc. to help w/ pain)
Aleve (Naproxen) is useful for pain.
Gentle stretching and range of motion exercises.
If you have access to a paraffin soak treatment, it can also help w/ the aching.

Gout or Rheumatoid Arthritis usually involves swelling and redness at the joint. The skin on or around the joint may feel hot to the touch.

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Lisa, Hi, I'm 43 too and got it in my thumb also!! Mine was the other joint, not the one you have it in, but the middle joint on the thumb. I woke up in pain, could not bend my thumb, etc.

Doctor said ice and advil. Or surgery. Do a google search for trigger thumb. Mine was a ball built up on the tendon. When I tried to move the thumb, the ball could not pass thru the joint and it hurt like He$#.

I bought a metal splint myself at walgreens. It was cushionied with blue spongy stuff. I wore it daily all day for about a month, pain or not. The ice was impractical, so I did not do it.

It finally went away.

My doctor asked if I had a blackberry and I said no. He said he sees a lot of this from frequent blackberry users from typing only with their thumbs. I do use a nextel for work though and now use only my forefinger, no thumbs. Doctor said thumbs are not made for repititive motion like that.

Did you overdo it? Maybe you have been typing a lot, or overusing your thumb too?

Good luck
Paulette

No, the nurse asked if I'd injured it, but i don't remember any injury. DH thought maybe I'd slept on it wrong, but if that were the case, like a neck, it would have gone away by now. I am not typing any more than usual. I don't have a Blackberry, though I do text my kids. However, last month I had about 400 to my daughters 9000 so I don't think that's it, either. And my texts are short! Who knows. Hopefully the doctor will figure it out on Friday.

I've not taken anything or iced it. Icing it sounds impractical like you say. If it gets too bad, I'll put a bag a frozen veggies on it. It's an ongoing aching, so I don't see me taking 3 Advil repeatedly for a week. I don't like to take tons of medicine if I don't need it. It only gets unbearable when I accidentally hit it or twist it. Then it's sharp for a few minutes and goes back to the aching.

Who knows. It's weird.

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

I have deQuervain's Tendonitis Here's information on this link
MedlinePlus - Search Results for: "DeQuervain's"
For me it got so bad that both wrists felt searing firey pain.
PCP sent me to a Wrist guy, who gave me a choice of surgery ot therapy.
I decided to try therapy first.
Therapist gave me a hard removable cast to wear 24/7 for 6 weeks.
She said the point was to stretch the tendon by forceing the thumb away from the fingers.
Oh, yeah this stretching does result in pain but it's more of a healing pain, if you know what I mean.
For me it worked.
Did each wrist seperately.

The therapist said when people do the surgery, it comes back anyway.

This was ..uuummm..maybe 9 years ago.
Yes it comes back, but you will know it's rearing it's ugly head and can wear the braces overnnight to get rid of it before it gets bad.
Every once in a while I get the desire to simply stretch my hand, pushing the tumb away as if it was in the cast. This simple excercise seems to be very relieving, but I don't get the deQuervain's Tendonitis very bad anymore. Probably because I've learned to take care of it at the first sign of it's returning.

Good luck in controling yours.