Finger joint pain - what are the possible causes and how to treat it?

Many times, patients complain of pain in their finger joints. All conditions have distinct and specific symptoms, so experts can quickly diagnose and prescribe the right treatment.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a serious disease associated with an inflammatory process. It causes pain in the joints and their deformation. The pathology usually occurs in people over 30 years old. Women are 3 times more likely to develop the disease than men.Rheumatoid arthritis appears suddenly and is associated with compromised immune system function. In this disease, immune cells mistake joint cells for viruses or bacteria and try to destroy them. The destruction process can last for many years.The disease has the following symptoms:

• Severe joint pain that worsens at night or in the morning;
• joint stiffness after sleep;
• high body temperature;
• sleep disorder;
• rapid fatigue;
• decreased appetite;
• Sudden weight loss;
• Nodules form in the elbow area.

Rheumatoid arthritis occurs due to the following factors:

• Previous sore throat or flu;
• joint damage;
• infectious pathology;
• chronic stress and depression;
• Genetic susceptibility.

A distinctive feature of rheumatoid arthritis among the joint diseases is a decrease in pain during exercise. If the finger joints of your right hand are painful and swollen, the same symptoms will appear on your left hand. Over time, the disease can affect other joints.Joint deformation and destruction can be avoided if treatment is started early.

Nuance!Breastfeeding for two years doubles a woman's risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis.

treat

Modern methods of treating rheumatoid arthritis include the following:

• golden light therapy;
• Cytostatic;
• taking antimalarial drugs;
• Sulfa drugs;
• D-Penicillamine.

On average, even an experienced rheumatologist takes about 6 months to choose the right treatment, as he examines the patient's characteristics and tolerance of the drug.

What is golden light therapy?

Gold therapy involves taking medications containing gold salts.Doctors recommend the use of gold preparations in the early stages of the disease. With their help, it is possible to achieve positive results in the treatment of acute, rapidly developing pathologies with severe pain and early degenerative changes in the joints. When nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs fail to provide relief, patients are prescribed gold-based drugs.The main advantage of gold therapy is that it can be used in the presence of concomitant inflammatory pathologies and malignancies. Additionally, during the course of the research, scientists discovered that gold salt actively fights fungi and some bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori.The course of treatment for gold preparations is 2-3 months. If the patient's condition does not improve during this period, the technique is canceled.

notes!Many people experience a recurrence of rheumatoid arthritis after receiving gold treatment for a period of time. Rheumatologists can re-prescribe gold therapy. Sometimes this treatment can be continued for several years if it does not negatively affect other organs.

Is cytostatic therapy effective?

To eliminate the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, cytostatics are often used.Since this disease is an autoimmune disorder, it's not surprising that doctors prescribe immunosuppressants. Their main advantage is high efficiency at relatively low doses. Rheumatoid arthritis patients take 5 or even 20 times less cytostatic doses than cancer patients. These drugs have been shown to combat severely progressive disease.Another advantage of immunosuppressant treatment is minimal side effects. Patients rarely complain of the following symptoms:

• rash;
• Intestinal dysfunction;
• Chills;
• Difficulty urinating.

Side effects will disappear quickly if the medication is stopped or your doctor adjusts the dose. The course of treatment is 1 month.

Treating finger joints with antimalarial drugs

Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with antimalarial drugs is extremely rare. The main advantage of this treatment is the good tolerance of the drug. A significant disadvantage of this treatment is the slow action of antimalarial drugs. The effect is obvious after 6-12 months, but the therapeutic effect is weak.

Do sulfonamides help treat rheumatoid arthritis?

Sulfonamides have been successfully used to treat finger pain. Their advantages include:

1. Good tolerance.
2. The degree of complications, if any, is low.
3. Acceptable price.

The disadvantage of these drugs is that they are slow-acting. Positive results are evident just 3 months after treatment begins.

How does D-penicillamine treat this disease?

D-penicillamine does not need to be prescribed if the patient is a candidate for gold preparations or treatment with cytostatics. It is far inferior to the listed treatments in terms of effectiveness, but significantly exceeds them in terms of the number of side effects, frequency of occurrence, and degree of complications. Therefore, D-penicillamine therapy may be used when gold salts and cytostatics are not well tolerated by patients.D-penicillamine is effective in patients with cardiac, respiratory or renal complications. It should be studied for 3 to 5 years, then a break of several years is required, after which the course must be repeated.

Gout - symptoms and treatment

One of the dangerous diseases of joints and tissues is gout. It occurs due to metabolic disorders in the body. Gout is characterized by increased levels of uric acid in the lymph.Symptoms of the disease include:

• Inflammation of the big toe joint;
• Severe tenderness in the morning or evening;
• Increased body temperature;
• redness of skin;
• Growths on the legs or arms.

If treatment is not started immediately, patients may develop gouty arthritis. Possible complications also include urolithiasis and kidney failure, which can lead to death.To treat gout, use nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for 1-2 weeks.In order to quickly reduce the concentration of uric acid in the body, anti-gout medications are needed.To eliminate acute symptoms of gout, experts prescribe a drug based on alkaloids from bulbs of the Liliaceae family. Glucocorticoids are used to relieve swelling and pain. These drugs can quickly reduce inflammation but can have a negative impact on the immune system.

psoriatic arthritis

About 15% of people with psoriasis have problems with their finger joints. Symptoms of this disease are:

• Joint deformation;
• Nocturnal pain syndrome;
• numbness in limbs;
• The skin discolors at the site of disease progression to purplish red;
• swelling of fingers;
• Liquidity is limited.

Most people with psoriatic arthritis will have damage to the nail plate. First, small pits form on their surface, and then their color changes due to the disruption of microcirculation.Pregnant women are often diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis. This is because the disease is also caused by hormones, which change in a woman’s body during pregnancy. Increased arthritis symptoms in pregnant women are often associated with weight gain.The causes of psoriatic arthritis are as follows:

• Injuried;
• severe stress and emotional distress;
• excessive physical activity;
• infectious diseases;
• Genetic predisposition.

The following groups of drugs are used to treat psoriatic arthritis:

1. Non-steroidal drugs. Designed to eliminate inflammation and reduce pain.
2. Glucocorticoids: injected into the joint cavity.
3. Cytostatics of the folate antagonist group: are the most popular systemic drugs.
4. An immunosuppressant that selectively acts on T lymphocytes: used to slow down the changes that occur in bone and cartilage tissue.

For psoriatic arthritis, it is recommended to abstain from alcoholic beverages, reduce consumption of citrus fruits and smoked foods, and stick to a low-calorie diet.

Osteoarthritis – how is it treated and what are the consequences of the disease?

Older people often complain of swelling in their finger joints. This may be a symptom of osteoarthritis. The disease may occur for the following reasons:

• hormone imbalance;
• genetic susceptibility;
• occupational stress and injuries;
• Age-related metabolic disorders.

Joint pain can help identify disease. Experts make an accurate diagnosis after X-rays and MRIs.Gymnastics will help relieve the patient's condition. This set of exercises is chosen by a doctor based on the individual characteristics of patients with osteoarthritis. Treatment also includes following a diet to lose excess weight, if any. You can't live without a hot program. It is recommended to use a paraffin bath, to which mineral oil should be added. To eliminate pain and relieve swelling, doctors prescribe nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which are derivatives of propionic acid and acetylsalicylic acid. Among analgesics, aniline drugs are often used. Massage helps warm up muscles and improves blood circulation.If treatment is not started promptly, the patient will not be able to cope with daily activities in the future. In this case, joint replacement surgery is inevitable.

What is root joint disease?

If a patient has pain in his thumb, this may indicate he has radicular arthropathy. The possible reasons for this phenomenon are:

• joint overload;
• past infectious diseases;
• Injuried;
• The body is poisoned.

Treatment of stage 1-2 radiculoarthrosis includes administration of chondroprotective agents. They activate the process of the emergence of new cartilage cells, which helps eliminate the disease.The use of manual therapy to treat radiculoarthrosis is quite popular. The therapist can realign the altered joints so the pain syndrome disappears. Additionally, you can massage your thumb to increase the tension of the cartilage tissue and improve joint mobility.If a patient is diagnosed with stage III radicular arthropathy, intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid are indicated. Glucocorticoids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are also effective. They increase blood flow to the affected joint, eliminating pain and relieving swelling.

Traditional medicine for finger pain

Not only can you deal with pain with the help of medicines, but you can also resort to folk remedies. For acute pain, using a gauze bandage soaked in apple cider vinegar is effective. To relieve swelling, a compress using grilled onions or boiled potatoes is perfect. It is useful to warm aching joints with hot sea salt and rub them with fir oil.

tincture

One common treatment is tinctures. You can prepare it with vodka. You should take 50 ml of vodka and 30 ml of valerian tincture, mix the two ingredients and add a few red pepper pods. After 3 hours, moisten a cotton swab with the resulting mixture and apply it to the phalanges. After one month of treatment, the positive effects are evident.Another effective remedy is a tincture based on chestnut inflorescences. It is enough to collect the ingredients and mix them with vodka. Leave for 14 to 20 days. When your fingers are numb and painful, rub the product in. Lilacs are allowed instead of chestnut inflorescences.

ointment

If the joints hurt when squeezing the fingers, you should use an ointment made of mustard and honey. To prepare, mix 5 g of mustard with 15 g of honey. Next, add 30 ml of olive oil, evaporate the mixture in a water bath until thick, cool and use daily to treat affected joints.For pain in the joint of the index finger of the right hand, it is recommended to use an ointment of bay leaves and juniper needles. Both ingredients should be mixed in equal proportions, then add 50 g of butter. You can use this ointment during regular joint massage.