In older age groups, finger pain is very common in both men and women. They are often accompanied by swelling, stiffness and cracking when bending or stretching the joints. Such symptoms are not only a sign of the natural aging of the body, but also clinical manifestations of various pathologies. Therefore, the cause of pain in the finger joints should be determined and treatment should be started immediately.
Causes of pain in the finger joints
If the pain occurs every week, it can no longer be attributed to increased muscle tension after prolonged arm work. In the initial stage of development, inflammatory or degenerative-dystrophic pathologies are manifested in this way. Finger soreness is associated with the gradual destruction of bone and cartilage tissue, which can cause joint deformity, complete or partial immobilization (ankylosis).
Arthritis
Finger joints can be affected by rheumatoid, reactive, psoriatic arthritis - inflammatory, rapidly progressing pathologies. In addition to severe pain, inflammation is also observed - redness of the skin and its swelling, limitation of range of motion. And the course of infectious arthritis is often accompanied by signs of general intoxication of the body - fever, chills, fever.
Still's disease
This is a severe autoimmune pathology, which probably develops due to the inadequate response of the immune system to the introduction of pathogenic microorganisms. Still's disease affects not only small and large joints. The skin, organs of the cardiovascular and respiratory system and lymph nodes are damaged.
Osteoarthritis
This pathology is characterized by destruction of bone tissue with further deformation of the joints. In osteoarthritis in the morning, the fingers swell, and when you try to bend or straighten them, there is some resistance. Sharp pains appear only in the period of relapse, and in the phase of remission - only mild discomfort.
Stenotic ligamentitis
The pathology develops due to often repetitive monotonous movements. Stenotic ligamentitis affects the ligament-tendon apparatus of the hand, in which the finger is blocked in a stretched or bent position. But such a pronounced symptom occurs in the final stage of the pathology, and in the initial stage it is manifested by pain, cracking or clicking when bending the joints.
Gout
With gout, uric acid salt crystals begin to settle in the finger joints, causing irritation of soft, cartilaginous, bone tissues. An inflammatory process develops in which ligaments, muscles and tendons are gradually involved. During a gout attack, sharp, burning, throbbing pains occur. The skin over the joints swells, reddens, becomes hot to the touch.
Polyosteoarthritis
Polyosteoarthritis is a form of osteoarthritis that affects several joints at once. Cartilaginous tissues become thinner, thicken and lose their cushioning properties. In order for the joints to stabilize, the bone structures begin to deform, growing to form osteophytes. These growths injure the soft tissues, which often leads to the development of an inflammatory process.
Injury
Pain in the finger joint can be the result of a fracture, sprain, subluxation, rupture of muscles, ligaments, tendons. Such injuries a person suffers when he falls on a straight arm, strongly points or hits a bruise. If the victim does not seek medical help, the joint structures have fused in the wrong anatomical position, so the pain in the hands becomes constant, increasing after hypothermia or sudden changes in weather.
Vibration disease
This pathology develops in manually mechanized workers associated with the use of percussion or rotary instruments. Clinically, vibration disease is manifested not only by unpleasant sensations in the joints of the fingers, but also by vascular disorders, angiospasms, circulatory disorders and jumps in blood pressure.
Tunnel syndrome
The cause of tunnel syndrome is any pathology that causes a decrease in the volume of the carpal tunnel (arthrosis, arthritis, lipoma). The result is a compression-ischemic lesion of the median nerve. Pain occurs, sensitivity decreases, patients complain to the doctor about a feeling of numbness, tingling, crawling. Every movement of the hand is accompanied by weakness, especially if you need to grab the object with your thumb.
Symptoms
Twitching, throbbing, sharp pain in the finger joint is the leading symptom of gout, infectious, rheumatoid arthritis, including juvenile. Accompanying symptoms are an increase in local temperature, redness and swelling of the skin.
Osteoarthritis and other degenerative-dystrophic pathologies in the initial phase of development are asymptomatic. Occasionally there are mild pains that disappear after a short rest. But their severity is constantly increasing. The pain is accompanied by stiffness, clicking when bending and / or spreading the fingers.
Effects
In the absence of medical intervention, the intensity of pain increases in the background of deformation of the interphalangeal joints. In the final stage of any pathology, partial or complete fusion of the joint space occurs. The person is unable to bend or bend the fingers, which causes loss of ability to work, disability.
Inflammatory and destructive processes gradually spread to healthy soft, cartilaginous and bony tissues. Therefore, pain may soon be felt in several joints or fingers.
Diagnosis
The primary diagnosis is made on the basis of external examination, patient complaints, anamnesis data and the results of numerous functional tests. To confirm this, X-rays, MRI, CT, arthroscopy are performed. If an infectious origin of the pathology is suspected, a biological sample is inoculated into nutrient media to determine the type of bacteria and their resistance to antibiotics.
Treatment
When determining therapeutic tactics, the doctor (orthopedist, rheumatologist, traumatologist) takes into account the type of disease, the shape of its course, the degree of tissue damage and the number of complications that have developed. Often, in order to reduce the severity of the patient's pain, it is recommended to wear soft bandages, splints or semi-rigid, rigid orthoses.
Medications
Drugs of different clinical and pharmacological groups are used in the treatment of pathologies manifested by pain in the joints of the fingers. These are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), muscle relaxants, glucocorticosteroids, chondroprotectors. Medicines to improve blood circulation, B vitamins, and warming fats are also used. In order to alleviate acute pain, intramuscular and sometimes intra-articular administration of drugs is practiced. Using tablets or ointments will allow you to get rid of less pronounced discomfort.
Massage
After relieving acute pain and inflammation, patients are given sessions of classical acupressure, vacuum, including hardware massage. Revitalization procedures help to improve blood circulation, eliminate muscle cramps and speed up the recovery of damaged tissues.
Physiotherapy
Electrophoresis and ultraphonophoresis procedures help to alleviate pain or relieve it completely. During their application, hormonal agents, chondroprotectors, anesthetics, analgesics, B vitamins are used. For the treatment of joint pathologies, patients can be prescribed up to 10 sessions of magnetotherapy, laser therapy, UHF therapy.
Physical exercises
Regular exercise therapy can quickly strengthen the muscles of the hand, prevent the progression of osteoarthritis or arthritis. A set of exercises is made by an exercise doctor, taking into account the type of disease. It usually involves rotating the arms, bending the fingers, grasping and holding small objects.
Diet
In the diet of a patient with arthritis or osteoarthritis should be a lot of fresh herbs, vegetables, fruits. It is necessary to completely exclude semi-finished products, smoked meat, fast food, fatty meat, any alcohol from the daily menu. Instead, it is useful to eat rabbit meat, beef, fatty sea fish, clear soups, cereals, dairy products.
Folk remedies
After the main treatment, removal of pain and inflammation, doctors may allow the use of traditional medicine. During the rehabilitation period, the use of certain decoctions, hand baths, and homemade ointments is allowed.
Use infusion and decoction of herbs
The course of pathologies that cause pain in the fingers is often worsened by the worsening of the person's psycho-emotional state. Using herbal teas will help in improvement. St. John's wort, valerian, thyme, thyme, lemon balm, oregano have a tonic, soothing effect, normalize sleep. To prepare the drink, a teaspoon of dry plant material (without sliders) is boiled with a glass of boiling water. Leave to infuse for a couple of hours, then filter and take 100 ml before bed.
Roasted onion and wax fat
Bake two medium-sized peeled onions until soft, grind in a mortar until smooth, adding 20 g of wax melted in a water bath to the meals. The resulting mass is applied to the joints, fixed with a gauze bandage. The duration of the treatment procedure is 1-2 hours.
Ointment of honey and mustard with herbs
In a bowl pour a tablespoon of dried marigold flowers and chamomile, pour 0, 5 cups of boiling water, leave for 5 hours. Mix a teaspoon of dry mustard and fatty sour cream in a mortar, add 2 tablespoons of honey. The resulting infusion is injected drop by drop until a homogeneous mass is formed. Before using the ointment, the skin is lubricated with vegetable oil.
Herbal baths
Put in a thermos 5 berries of rose hips, spruce, barberry, pour a tablespoon of elecampane, St. John's wort, birch buds. Pour a liter of boiling water, leave for 2 hours. Cool slightly, filter, pour into a cup, add more warm water if necessary. Dip the brushes into the resulting infusion for 30 minutes.
Oil baths
Fill a small bowl with warm water (1, 5-2 liters), add 1-2 drops of essential oils of rosemary, eucalyptus, pine. Pour a tablespoon of cosmetic almond oil, shake. They put their hands in the water for 30-40 minutes. After the procedure, any nourishing or moisturizing cream is rubbed into the skin.
Straw tray
In a small pot pour 0, 5 liters of chopped oat straw, pour 2 liters of hot water. Bring to a boil, simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes. Cool to room temperature, filter. Pour the warm broth into a cup, keep the brushes in it for about half an hour.
Preventive actions
To avoid pain in your finger joints, you should undergo a complete physical examination every 6-12 months. Pathology detected at an early stage of development usually responds well to conservative treatment. You should also avoid traumatic situations, do not smoke, limit alcohol consumption, exclude from your diet foods rich in fats and simple carbohydrates.