Question - Sprained wrist - left untreated

by Katie
(Eau Claire, WI)

i sprained my wrist a couple years ago doing a cartwheel (gone wrong), and just wrapped it in an ace bandage.. it has hurt on and off since then, but lately has been hurting so badly when i bend it at all, and i'm not sure what to do about it.

Is there a way to treat this at all?
Will i ever be able to do a cartwheel again?

Any kind of pressure on my wrist is extremely painful...

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Question - Sprained wrist - left untreated

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May 27, 2008
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Ever have an X-ray?
by: Bart - SII

I am assuming that you probably never had your wrist X-rayed when you hurt it originally. That is probably a good idea, just to make sure that nothing was fractured.

Most of the time, after a wrist sprain, the carpal bones can become irritated...all of the different bones need to be able to glide against each other when you move your wrist - not very big motions, but they have to be able to move a little bit.

With an injury, the joint surfaces become irritated, and they lose the ability to glide - so when you bend your wrist, instead of the bones gliding against each other, they just compress the surfaces. This can cause pain and irritation.

First off I would recommend seeing your doctor for an X-ray - I would guess that will come back negative for a fracture - the next step is to see either a Physical therapist or a hand therapist for some rehabilitation. The goal should be to restore the normal gliding of the carpal bones - the therapist can do this with joint mobilizations - that is going to be the key to fixing this problem.

I have seen a lot of patients who have been in the same position as you - hurt their wrist several months or years ago and continued to have pain on and off that got worse with activities...they all did very well once we restored the normal movement of the bones and the joints - so there is hope!

Start with your family doctor and go from there.

Hope this helps - comment back if you have other questions.

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May 27, 2008
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Submitted by: Bart - SII

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I am assuming that you probably never had your wrist X-rayed when you hurt it originally. That is probably a good idea, just to make sure that nothing was fractured. Most of the time, after a wrist sprain, the carpal bones can become irritated...all of the different bones need to be able to glide against each other when you move your wrist - not very big motions, but they have to be able to move a little bit. With an injury, the joint surfaces become irritated, and they lose the ability to glide - so when you bend your wrist, instead of the bones gliding against each other, they just compress the surfaces. This can cause pain and irritation. First off I would recommend seeing your doctor for an X-ray - I would guess that will come back negative for a fracture - the next step is to see either a Physical therapist or a hand therapist for some rehabilitation. The goal should be to restore the normal gliding of the carpal bones - the therapist can do this with joint mobilizations - that is going to be the key to fixing this problem. I have seen a lot of patients who have been in the same position as you - hurt their wrist several months or years ago and continued to have pain on and off that got worse with activities...they all did very well once we restored the normal movement of the bones and the joints - so there is hope! Start with your family doctor and go from there. Hope this helps - comment back if you have other questions.

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