Hand and Arm Pain (pain or discomfort caused by disease or injury to the finger, hand or arm)
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Emergent Care - Have you identified one or more of the following symptoms?
- Bone deformity
- Bone protruding from the skin
- Change in color, temperature (blue, white) with or without numbness or tingling
- Loss of movement or function
- Open wound with or without bleeding
- Traumatic loss of fingernail
| Yes |
No |
Seek Immediate Medical Attention!
These symptoms can be life-threatening. |
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| A "sprain" is an injury that affects the tendons, muscles or ligaments surrounding a joint
A "strain" is a muscular injury caused by over stretching or excessive physical activity
A "fracture" is a broken bone
Sprains, strains and fractures can cause pain, swelling and black and blue color over the bone or joint
Repetitive motion, stress or disease (arthritis, diabetes, thyroid), causes "carpal tunnel syndrome"
In carpel tunnel syndrome, swollen and thickened connective tissue in the wrist press against a nerve leading to the hand |
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Urgent Care - Have you identified one or more of the following symptoms?
- Pain with swelling, redness or tenderness
- Blood under fingernail with tenderness, pain or swelling
- Tearing away of fingernail
- Pain that shoots through the hand, wrist or forearm
- Weakness in the hand or fingers
- Symptoms continue after 3 days of self-management
| Yes |
No |
Contact Your Health Care Provider. |
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Self-Management - You can help in the following ways:
- Remove jewelry, especially rings
- Splint the injured part by tying it to a stiff object, if a fracture is suspected
- Rest and elevate hand/arm
- Apply ice pack to injured part 20 minutes, every 1-2 hours for the first 24-48 hours
- Take acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil) or naproxen (Aleve) for pain, if no reasons to the contrary
- Soak fingernail in warm water 20 minutes, 4 times a day to relieve pain
- Stop exercising or playing sports and return gradually
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