Arthritis in Hand

[welshjon81]

My wife seems to have developed arthritis in the ball/base joint of her thumb. She has issues using anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen etc. as it upsets her tummy. She's a vet too, so it's getting to the point where is very painful for her to perform surgery. I'm worried that over the next few years, she may have to stop operating all together. Anyone have any good personal remedies? She's going for a steroid shot into the joint soon, but I fear this is just patching it up rather than anything else.

[ledz]

Sorry to hear.
I’ve have arthritis in both my thumbs for a few years now
Sometimes really painful other times ok
I have a steroid injection in both thumbs once a year at the moment
Initially went to see the hospital physio dept who gave me loads of exercises to do to try and keep motion in my thumbs
I’m now seeing a consultant as to whether surgery is the next step
Hope all goes well Thx

[craig1912]

I had something similar years ago. Had a Trapieziectomy and it sorted it.

[sawman]

I have some worsening CMC joint arthritis probably as a result of falling on a dendix ski slope 43years ago. Fortunately its my left hand, so could be worse.

One of the hand and wrist surgeons locally has started offering CMC joint replacement ( looks like a mini hip replacement) which might be my preferred option when it gets bad enough

[ledz]

craig1912 said:

I had something similar years ago. Had a Trapieziectomy and it sorted it.

That’s the one.
Where they remove a small bone or tendon ?
Think that’s what my consultant is on a about
Got my appointment in 5 weeks

[dreamer75]

I'm also a woman and arthritis in both CMC joints but worse in the left hand. It impacts so much stuff - I ride bikes & motorbikes so the grip / reach for the brakes / downhills / rough ground doesn't help. Also play the piano and of course navigate normal life like opening jars, lifting weights in the gym etc.

I had an injection but honestly it made it worse and it never really settled down - it helps plenty though, and they also jabbed around with the needle to try to burst a ganglion that with hindsight, I wish they'd just ignored.

I saw an excellent hand physio who gave me exercises to do (and was very clear I should warm the joint first - with a bean bag or similar), some advice about K-Tape support for it while I'm biking or whatever, recommended some neoprene soft splints for the gym, and made me some hard splints to wear at night when it's bad. She also helped me understand what not to do with it (i.e. I'm hyper mobile so my upper thumb joint naturally just bends backwards which puts the CMC under a lot of pressure, so don't do it!). I also find that typing is bad. And I've bought things to help with opening jars & cans. Anything I can do to eke out the life of the joint.

I've found it goes through flareups which can last weeks, days, or hours. And can settle for *ages* but the general advice of keeping the muscles strong to support the joint as much as possible is good. And using the thumb and hand in a way to "save" the joint as much as possible.

The physio is in a trial to look at long term out comes of joint replacement, trapeze(I'veforgotten the rest of the name of the surgery, but it's the more traditional one), and conservative treatment i.e. physio. I don't know if the joint replacement is scoring particularly well at the moment - I think it's ok if you're not hugely active.

@Craig1912 I'd be interested to hear about your trapieziectomy (I think that's the name) - how long ago it was, recovery, and what sort of things you can/can't do now? I'm worried about having that and not being able to ride, or ski, or gym or something.

[WyrleyD]

I had a throbbing pain at the base of my thumb that I thought was Arthritis but it turned out to be a bout of De Quervain's Tenosynovitis which has more or less been fixed with exercises. It's usually caused by using that hand/thumb repeatedly in certain positions over a long period. I thought it was Arthritis because a previous problem with my swollen knuckles was the beginning of the problems to come according to the specialist, he reckons I've inherited it from my mother (unusual to go from mother to son according to him) as she had extensive Arthritis in her hands due to many years machining and hand sewing upholstery.

[craig1912]

ledz said:

That s the one.
Where they remove a small bone or tendon ?
Think that s what my consultant is on a about
Got my appointment in 5 weeks

Yep, small bone. Had it done 10 years ago under local and nerve block.
It completely cleared the issue and had no pain since.

[dreamer75]

craig1912 said:

Yep, small bone. Had it done 10 years ago under local and nerve block.
It completely cleared the issue and had no pain since.

Thanks for sharing - is there anything you can't do anymore?

[craig1912]

dreamer75 said:

Thanks for sharing - is there anything you can't do anymore?

No nothing. Wouldn’t know it had been done other than a 2cm scar at base of thumb.