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Dr. Westerdahl is proud to be presenting and teaching medical providers on ultrasound guided procedures at the 2024 Musculoskeletal Galaxy Conference in Portland, Oregon

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Tendonitis


 

Tendonitis

Whether its typing, texting, or other daily work activity, our hands get used and abused day after day. Sometimes overuse injuries result. If you are experiencing hand or wrist pain with certain activities, let Sports Health Northwest help you with figuring out the cause and working towards a solution allowing less pain and more enjoyment of work, sports, and life.

Hand and wrist tendinopathy

There are many tendons that course through the wrist and hands that help extend or flex the fingers and wrist and provide controlled movement and function in gripping and lifting objects. In adults, de Quervain tendinopathy is a common cause of wrist and thumb pain. It typically affects women between the ages of 30 and 50. It can commonly be associated with lifting something with your thumbs pointing up like a baby with both hands.  While this condition has been attributed to work or other repetitive activities involving the thumb, there are many theories as to how this develops. 

Individuals with de Quervain tendinopathy commonly describe pain at the base of the thumb and wrist area and may notice swelling. A sports medicine doctor or hand surgeon can commonly diagnose this problem based on symptoms. X-rays are usually normal. At Sports Health Northwest, our sports injury doctor commonly utilizes ultrasound to look for thickening of the involved tendons or surrounding tissue. 

Treatment of tendinopathies of the hand and wrist like de Quervain tendinopathy is usually nonoperative involving splinting or bracing, medication, therapeutic exercises, activity modifications, and sometimes an injection of corticosteroid or orthobiologics can help our Portland area patients experience less pain and more enjoyment of work, sports, and life.

If you are experiencing chronic wrist pain or swelling, make an appointment to see our sports injury specialist. We want to help you understand the cause of pain and get you back to pain free activity.

Location

Sports Health Northwest, Inc
12672 NW Barnes RD, STE 100
Portland, OR 97229
Phone: 503-747-6376
Fax: 503-530-8406

Office Hours

Get in touch

503-747-6376