A common injury for all types of athletes is a wrist sprain. Not only athletes but also other people often suffered from it. All it takes is a momentary loss of balance. Breaking your fall, an instant blow, or twisting in the wrong direction can sprain your wrist. How to treat a sprained wrist then, do you have any idea.
As you slip, you automatically stick your hand out to break your fall. However, once your palm hits the ground, the force of impact bends it back toward your forearm. The ligaments can be stretched out that connects the wrist and hand bones a little too far. It can result in minor tears or even more than a complete break to the ligament.
Whatever the reason is, you want to heal as soon as possible. You will not be able to use your hand properly for daily activities such as writing, cooking, brushing your teeth, and even tying your shoes. Before finding out how to treat a sprained wrist, let’s figure out the levels of a sprain.
Sprain has three levels:
Mild (Grade I) – The ligaments of wrist are stretched or have microscopic tears.
Moderate (Grade II) – The damage is chronic and more severe. Some wrist ligaments might be torn partially.
Severe Sprains (Grade III) – One or more wrist ligaments are completely torn or torn away from where they usually connect to bones.
How to Treat a Sprained Wrist
Make sure to rest your wrist for at least 48 hours and don’t move it too much. If the symptoms are severe and you doubt that you might be having a wrist fracture, then don’t waste time and visit a physician. However, if you are sure that it is a sprained wrist, later try the following solutions that can help you for sure.
Put Ice on the Injury
The natural response of the body to an injury is inflammation. Cold helps to slow down the process of inflammation. It also reduces pain and swelling. Although you might not be able to avoid the pain and swelling at once completely, however, you can definitely limit it with an instant application of cold therapy.
Compress the Injury Instantly
Besides, icing the injury make sure to apply light compression to the wrist as it may help reducing swelling. Also, use an elastic bandage to apply consistent pressure to the injured area and balance the amount of pressure as necessary. Edema is excess fluid that can be controlled with the compression around the wrist joint. It could restrict mobility, put in discomfort, and delay the healing process.
Anti-Inflammatory Medication
OTC medication might help reduce pain and swelling. You must use the recommended dose, and consider eliminating it after a couple of days so that you can be able to determine whether you need to continue using it or not.
Take Proper Rest and Immobilize the Joint
A sprained wrist must not be at rest. If you move a sprained wrist too much, then it could develop irritation and slow down the healing process. So, try not to move your hand and keep it immobilized in a brace, specifically for the first few days of the injury. It is highly recommended to take rest while your body heals.
Continue with Cold therapy and Compression
After an injury, ice and bandages work awesomely, because most of the people have them on hand. Consider continuing a cold therapy and compression while your healing process is in progress. Well, this is ultimately how to treat a sprained wrist.
What does a Wrist Sprain Feel Like?
Let me tell you a couple of symptoms of a sprained wrist.
- Pain
- Swelling
- Bruising
- Care and warmth around the injury
- Feeling a popping or shredding in the wrist
- Loss of motion
- Weakness
Whether it is a wrist sprain or a fracture, consult your doctor for a thorough physical examination. You might also need an:
- X-ray
- MRI
- Arthrogram, a special kind of x-ray or MRI recommended after a dye is injected into the wrist
- Arthroscopy, a plainly invasive surgery in which a tiny camera is inserted into the wrist
How Much Time Does it Take to Heal a Wrist Sprain?
The healing time depends on how many ligaments are affected as well as the degree to which they are torn. American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons has categorized the sprains by severity. As I have mentioned above, three grades of sprains, let me tell you how much time it takes to heal a sprain according to grades.
A mild sprain may heal in just a few days, whereas a severe sprain could take weeks or even months to recover fully. However, regardless of severity, you must consider the treatments mentioned-above for a safe healing process. How to treat a sprained wrist would be now more easy for you if you ever experienced a sprain in your wrist. Take care!
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