Many postpartum women suffer from tendinitis of the thumb and/or wrist commonly known as DeQuervain’s Syndrome. This occurs due to a likely overuse of the dominant hand when performing baby care such as nursing, changing diapers using the same pattern of movement, and lifting/holding the baby. Pushing a heavy loaded stroller is another causative factor. The mom usually experienced daily pain in the thumb and wrist and pain can worsen night. Swelling can also be present in the thumb and wrist. There may be numbness or tingling sometimes indicating carpal tunnel syndrome at the same time. Touching the area lightly may cause sensitivity. We have great success using manual therapies, therapeutic ultrasound, cold laser therapy, stretching, strengthening exercises and specific taping techniques. Icing the area is paramount. Here you see a patient being taped to provide added support to the thumb tendons that are in pain. She also had a subluxed scaphoid bone in her wrist so we provided added support to keep it stable throughout the day and night. The left image is using only kinesiotaping. But at her follow up appointment she reported it was not enough support. We used an oldie but goodie, Mcconnell tape, which provides more support with improved success. Combining old and new can be just what’s needed for a better end result. Using a wrist/thumb spica splint is also recommended.
