Wrist Tendonitis Signs, Causes, and Treatments (2024)

Wrist tendonitis is irritation and inflammation of the tendons at the wrist joint. It can be caused by overuse and repetitive movements like texting, playing video games, or writing.

Treatment for wrist tendonitis can include rest, icing, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), hand therapy, and cortisone injections.

This article gives you an overview of wrist tendonitis, including what it is and who's most likely to get it. You'll learn the symptoms and causes of wrist tendonitis and how it's diagnosed and treated.

What Is Wrist Tendonitis?

Tendons are structures that connect a muscle to bone. They allow joints to move.

The wrist tendons connect your forearm muscles to the hand and finger bones. They're divided into two groups:

• Extensors: Three tendons across the back of the wrist that bend the wrist backward
• Flexors: Three tendons across the front of the wrist that bend the wrist forward

Tendonitis usually affects one of these tendons, but it can involve two or more.

Often, wrist tendonitis occurs in the areas where tendons cross each other or pass over a bony area and become irritated. This can lead to pain when you move the wrist.

Wrist Tendonitis Symptoms

Symptoms of wrist tendonitis include:

• Pain that's worse with movement
• Swelling around the wrist joint
• Warmth and redness
• Grinding sensations (crepitus) with movement

Causes

Any tendon can become irritated and cause pain, but tendonitis is more common in a few specific tendons. That's due to their anatomy plus common activities.

Tendonitis can be caused by:

• Trauma
• Overuse
• Repetitive movement

It can also be caused by several conditions, including:

• Gout or pseudogout (sudden, painful swelling in a joint)
• Autoimmune disorders (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, lupus)
• Diabetes (possibly due to blood flow to tendons being restricted)

Some of these causes are related more to inflammation. In others, the main feature is chronic damage to the tendon (tendinosis).

Diagnosis

Healthcare providers diagnose wrist tendonitis based in part on your symptoms. They'll also give you a physical exam.

Specific stretches can be used to identify which tendon is hurting. One example is a test for de Quervain's tenosynovitis. That's a type of tendonitis often seen shortly after childbirth.

To test for it, your provider will have you:

• Bend your thumb into your palm
• Make a fist around it
• Bend your wrist toward your pinky finger

If the thumb side of your wrist hurts, it's most likely de Quervain's. This is called the Finkelstein test.

Imaging typically isn't needed to diagnose tendonitis. But your provider may want an X-ray to check for fractures or arthritis. An X-ray doesn't show tendonitis.

Ultrasounds and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be useful, though. They can show whether there's fluid around the aggravated tendon.

Treatment

Your healthcare provider will choose wrist tendonitis treatments based on the location, type, and severity of your tendonitis. Wrist tendonitis is unlikely to heal on its own without some kind of action, even if it's just home care or avoiding the motion that causes pain.

Home Remedies

Early goals usually focus on controlling inflammation and allowing the tendon time to heal. This may include a plan for wrist tendonitis treatment at home that involves:

• Immobilization:Resting your wrist and possibly making an at-home splint or case for further immobilization can help the wrist heal.
• Icing: Icing a few times a day reduces inflammation and relieves swelling and pain. Be sure you ice properly.
• Elevation: To reduce swelling, keep your wrist propped, possibly with a pillow, above your waist.
• Anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs):NSAIDs help lower inflammation and pain. You can buy these over the counter (prescription NSAIDs are also available).
• Gentle exercises: You can do hand exercises at home that help to stretch and strengthen the joint.

In-office Care

If home treatment doesn't help your tendonitis, there are a couple of in-office treatments that your healthcare provider may suggest:

• Physical therapy: This involves working with a therapist to identify painful movements and perform range of motion and strengthening exercises.
• Cortisone injection:A powerful anti-inflammatory is injected right into the inflamed area. You can only have a few injections, though. Too many can weaken tendons.
• Ultrasound therapy: This is usually a quick in-office procedure in which a healthcare provider uses an ultrasound to identify the problem tendon and then uses a percutaneous needle tenotomy tool (a small needle) to break down and remove the damaged tissue.

Surgery

This is reserved for when other treatments fail.

Most of the time surgery can be done with local anesthesia. The surgeon will make a small incision in the wrist and may remove inflamed tissues or release pressure from tight tendon sheaths. If the damage to the tendons is extreme, surgery may require general anesthesia.

Physical therapy might be recommended while your wrist heals, which can take several weeks to a few months. Possible risks include:

• Infection
• Nerve injuries
• Swelling
• Bleeding
• Scarring
• Tearing of the tendon
  

Preventing Flare-Ups

Prevent flare-ups of wrist tendonitis by modifying activities that aggravate it.

This may mean changing the way you lift or adjusting your grip. Other steps include:

• Wearing a splint, brace, or wrap during activities that irritate your wrist
• Not masking symptoms with medication, which can lead you to overuse your wrist without realizing it
• Preparing your tendons for activity with gentle stretching and heat (ice afterward to quiet inflammation)

If you can't control the symptoms, see your healthcare provider.

When to Contact a Healthcare Provider

• Have been taking care of your wrist at home and still have pain after two weeks
• Lose muscle mass in your wrist, hands, or fingers
• Experience swelling or redness in your wrist
• Are experiencing stiffness in your wrist
• Your wrist, hands, or fingers are numb or tingling

If you have extreme bleeding or are unable to move your wrist, hand, or fingers, seek emergency care.

Summary

Tendonitis is common in the six main tendons around your wrist joint. This painful condition can be caused by injury, overuse, and inflammatory disorders.

It's diagnosed based on symptoms, a physical exam, and simple tests. You may or may not be sent for imaging, like X-rays or an MRI.

Treatment with rest, ice, and anti-inflammatory medication may help. Hand therapy and steroid injections may also work to speed up recovery time for wrist tendonitis. Surgery is a last resort.

Modify your activities to keep tendonitis from coming back. If you need help with this, talk to your healthcare provider or physical therapist.

A Word From Verywell

Wrist tendonitis can be painful and debilitating, but you don't just have to live with it. Talk to your healthcare provider about your options.

Most types of wrist tendonitis do get a lot better with treatment. Stick to the regimen and be careful how you use the injured wrist. That'll help you get back to doing the activities you enjoy.