Open wrist, or wrist sprain, is a very common condition that is felt as pain, discomfort, and swelling when you move your hand. Discover its symptoms, causes and useful medical treatments for its solution.
Surely at some point you have suffered what is popularly known as open wrist. Its real medical name is wrist sprain, and it usually feels like discomfort or pain that can be intense, which appears especially when we make some kind of movement with the wrist. The truth is that we are facing a very common discomfort or pain, which can be suffered by anyone, although with a higher incidence in those who lift weights or who are athletes in general.
A wrist sprain occurs as a result of a tear or excessive stretching of the ligaments that support the joint. Ligaments consist of fibrous bands that provide stability to a joint, which are made up of fibrous tissues whose main function is to join anatomical structures.
What are the causes of open wrist?
Among the most common causes we can mention above all two very common: falls and injuries. The first one is one of the most common, since when we fall we tend to automatically extend our hands in order to cushion the blow. Precisely for this reason, by exerting pressure on the hands (especially on the wrist), we can tear the ligaments.
What are your symptoms?
The symptoms of having an open wrist are quite clear, since it is a fairly simple injury to diagnose.
Pain is usually felt in the wrist that can radiate to the hand, accompanied by tenderness in the injured area and swelling. This pain is felt especially when we make movements with the wrist. Precisely because of this pain or discomfort, numbness and limitation of mobility can be felt, as well as heat in the joint.
Open wrist treatment
The first treatment that can be practiced at the time of opening the wrist and suffering the sprain is the application of ice on the injury, a few hours after it has occurred.
It is also important to immobilize the wrist and avoid moving it so as not to feel pain. To avoid possible edema, it is also advisable to raise your arm and move your fingers.
Therapeutic massages are also very useful and recommended, especially those performed transversely and obliquely with the help of the thumbs, applying it to the dorsal and palmar region of the carpus for 15 to 20 minutes every two days.
An exercise that helps a lot and that you can easily do at home is to sit down, with your forearm resting on a table while leaving your hand outside, as if hanging. Bring your hand up without touching it with the other, slowly as much as you can, holding this position for 10 seconds, and then return to the starting position. Then bring your hand down slowly trying to touch the edge of the table. Hold for 10 seconds and return to the starting position.
When the days go by and you do not feel relief or improvement, it is advisable to go to a physiotherapist, who will help you recover the mobility of the wrist while relieving the pain with the application of massages.
