Smiling Fibros

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hi all this is something that has happend off and on for years. but lately it is doing it for no good reason. i mean i did not do Chistmas cards, or work in garden, or paint or anything fun like make my jewelry. it hurts tooo much so i cant right now....anyway does anyone ever have trouble with your fingers and thumbs joints popping and locking up on you????? what did you do .?? i usually just tape them up for awhile to keep my self from moving them to the point of locking but its been months now and it still happens when i try to go a day with tapeing them. i know i can cause the carpal tunnel thing to happen if i work with my hands too much. both hands canning was hard this year. 2004 i dont want shot in my hands it did not help the carpal tunnel at all and i tried more than once. by the way the specialist said i did not have capal tunnel my number we not bad enough, i reamember, but when your hands go numb and you are swollen from it it is something do any of you have it hurt when you just lie down on your back?? that could be the back ?? type a little or drive a couple miles or hold a needle ect well anyone have any thing to write i am not looking so much for a cure but to open a new line of dicussion for us to share love ya all birdiecup

[ I am not any sort of medical professional, but I have dealt with a lot of doctors and a lot of tests. So here are just some humble comments based on my personal experience and research. ]

First...when did you get tested for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? I assume you had the EMG(where they shock the crud out of you). I think my CTS progressed pretty fast, so if it is convenient, and if it's been a while since you were tested, you might consider getting rechecked.

When your finger joints lock up, does it feel like the joint is physically stuck, or is any of the problem that your finger muscles don't want to work properly?

If your finger joints are swollen or red, that sounds more like an arthritis thing. It can affect how well the joints move. A Sed Rate is an easy blood test they can do to check for inflammation, and I think it is fairly cheap.

As for the numbness. Numbness is almost always caused by a nerve problem or a circulation problem. Is it only certain parts of your hands that go numb? CTS mostly affects the thumb and first two fingers. When mine was bad, those fingers would go numb just from me holding my elbow loosely bent. If your other fingers go numb, but NOT the thumb and first two fingers, it can imply that the problem is at the elbow, not the wrist. There is another nerve "tunnel" at the elbow...right where it burns if you "hit your funny bone." If you've done that, you will feel a zap down from your elbow into those last fingers.

If you are also having spine problems up at the cervical/neck level, that can cause pain or numbness in your hands, even if there is none in your arms. Most neurologists I have been to never seem to consider that possibility--only if you have pain radiating from neck to the problem area. For example, I have some major neurological problem in my left hand, and a pinched nerve on the left side of my neck, but I can't get a neurologist to think they just might be related!

My advice: make a list of questions and concerns, then either make your doctor(s) address them or find the answers yourself. It is so important to go to doctor appointments as prepared as possible so you can be in control of your health care.

Please feel free to ask any and all questions here. We have so many people that can help. :)

I don't have joints locking down but I do have times when I can't close my hands or make my fingers do what I want.

I agree with Spirit you should get tested for CTS if it has been awhile. One of the Dr.s I saw told me that sometimes a person can test negitive for CTS but still have it. That is what he thought with me.

Also I do have times when my hands or just fingers swell up. I have this one spot on both hands that when my hands are bad it is always swollen up almost like a blister.

Keep us updated!!! :)

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