de Quervain’s Tendinitis -(Wrist pain after giving birth)
Mar 27th, 2006 by Lilian
Each day on the MyMomsBest forum, I learn new things.
de Quervain’s Tendinitis – sounds like some exotic tender steak! LOL. Well, it is not. A few of the breastfeeding mothers had experienced this sore tendon/locked wrist whereby they are not able to use their palm due to severe pain.
There is an active discussion thread going on at the forum where several moms shared their experiences and dilemma.
From Angie :
1) Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
moos can refer to the link below for more info :
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/carpal_tunnel/carpal_tunnel.htm
According to the physiotherapist, this syndrome occurs in pregnant
or post delivery cos during late pregnancy, we can easily get water
retention esp. at the wrist area, so when the tendon there is aggravated (e.g. like carrying a babyfor a long time) , that part will get painful.
From eBee
I saw and orthopedic and he diagnosed me with de Quervain’s Tendinitis, which is basically the inflamation of the tendons.
He gave me 3 ways to make it go away:
1) Take oral medication – but this will affect our milk, so no go.
2) Inject steroid – minimal affect on milk, so took this option, but pain came back 3 months later.
3) Get a minor surgery to free up the inflammed tendons. Did this last week as the last resort. Apart from the wound pain, the pain in the wrist is gone.
So, mothers out there with this condition, please do not feel depressed, I definitely felt that way esp. when you cannot carry your baby and you have people telling you that you got it as a result of not taking care of yourself during confinement! It is not true!
The doctor said that pregnant and new moms will get this more often as a result of laxed muscles. Sometimes exercise will do the trick and sometimes if we stop bfg, it will also go away. Well, stopping bfg is not an option and so, I resorted to this.
Just my 2 cents worth…
_________________
May Li – Proud mother of breastfed Ryan (3/05)
The below are some FAQs I found on the net. I hope sharing these information will help other post-natal moms who suffer the pain in their tendons. Remember, seek your doctor’s advice if it bothers you too much.
What is it?
DeQuervain’s tendinitis is a painful problem which results from irritation of tendons on the side of the wrist which move the thumb sideways away from the palm. It can result in wrist and forearm pain on the side of the thumb, particularly with certain positions and movements of the wrist.
Read the rest here.
Thank you for posting this. I was getting really nervous about what I was suffering from. I am still planning speak to my doc at my 6 week visit about this but at least I have something to inquire her about this pain on my wrist.
Yeah I been feeling pain buy both my arm, and haven’t gottan any treatment because I didn’t what I was, and u though that I might go away but is still hurt…thanks for the info
for wrist pain we should go surgery or inject steriods what are the side effect of both please tell dear.i have three months baby
i had my baby in may and just in the last month my wrists have been hurting and my hands swell up around my thumb palm and two fingers over.The throbbing is horrible ,worse at night and in the morning.My wrists lock up they are tight and itchy and tingley.I am a meat cutter and have been out of work for a couple months,thought maybe that was the cause for the pain,but i cut meat with my right hand and this is in both hands.Thanks now i have a name for the problem
Thank God I’m not the only person with this condition. I gave birth in May and I’ve had painful wrists ever since. I had no idea what it was…I breastfeed as well. It hurts so bad that I’ve just learned to live with the pain. I still lift my 22 lb baby and do all that is required with a newborn but it hurts so much! Thanks for the information. I will endure the pain…surgery or steriod injections is not an option.
You are awesome – at least this is something to check into! This type of pain is exactly what I have been experiencing! And my GP seemed so unconcerned about my wrist pain. I have issues even picking my baby up with my left hand anymore!
Hi – Just to add to this. I spoke to a physiotherapist about my wrist pain this afternoon, and she said it is a fairly common problem among breastfeeding mothers (and physiotherapists, as she has it, too!) She advised lightly massaging the wrist across the tendon, applying ice once a day for a few minutes, and stretching the tendon by tucking my thumb into my fist and using my other hand to lightly stretch the hand down and away from the tendon. Once the swelling has gone down, she will show me some strengthening exercises, so I’ll post them here once I know.
She also advised that you deal with it right away, because if left untreated, it can get worse and you can develop nodules on the tendon that will flare up from time to time and cause pain for many years.
Just a comment. I have been suffering from De Quervains for 2 mos. I got it from carrying my baby (who is bigger than average). The doctor went on and on about breastfeeding mothers and hormonal changes etc etc. I didn’t bother to stop him — but actually we adopted our baby. SO just carrying a heavy load is enough to do it!
Thank you for posting about this! I too thought I was the only one with this dreaded wrist pain, it feels most painful in the early mornings when I first pick up my baby out of his crib and of course during breastfeedig when holding him to the breast.
I went to a GP who told me in all his years of working as a doctor he had never seen it before & had no idea what it was & even though he had no idea about it was quick to suggest surgery, I was not impressed!
Thank god for the internet at least now i have some idea what this is now.