Your Detailed Guide about Treating Trigger Thumb without Surgery

Trigger finger is a condition that impact the tendons or the protective sheath around your fingers or thumb. In this your finger or thumb gets stuck in a flexed position. It occurs when the tendons that are responsible for the movement of your finger or thumb can’t glide smoothly in the sheath that surrounds it. It can be either the part of tendon sheath become swollen or if a small lump forms on the tendon. If you are suffering from this condition, here are the symptoms that you should know, before proceeding towards treating trigger thumb without surgery:

Symptoms of Trigger Finger:

• Finger stiffness: It mainly occurs whenever you flex your finger or thumb towards your palm.
• Popping Sensation: a snapping or popping feeling whenever you move your finger or thumb. It might feel like your finger is catching or getting stuck as they move.
• Tenderness at Base: Discomfort or tenderness around the base of the affected finger or thumb. The pain is usually worse whenever you grip or grasp something
• Finger Locking: The finger may temporarily lock in a bent position. you might need to use your other hand to gently push your finger to straighten it out
• Decreased Mobility: you might also loose your ability to flex or extend the finger.

Non- surgical trigger finger treatments:

• Resting: taking a break from persistent work and hobbies can help in reducing a strain on the inflamed tendon that will give it a time to heal.  
• Tapping: Wearing tape at night to keep the affected finger or thumb in a straight position while you sleep may be helpful.
• Massage:  Massaging is the best trigger thumb treatment without surgery as it can stimulate the healing process and help with pain by loosening muscle and increasing flexibility to improve your overall well-being. You can practice this with the help of massage tools or wands. 
• Medications: Oral and anti-inflammatory over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen or naproxen can help you with pain and inflammation
• Corticosteroid Injections: These injections are registered into your tendon sheath to reduce the trigger finger pain and limit movement impairment. Sometimes a person may require two or three injections to experience relief.
• Hot and cold therapy: Heat soothes the injured area, and cold with numb the pain. You can easily practice it at home. As heat cause blood vessels to widen, allowing more blood into the injured area. It will soothe soreness and improve healing time. On the other hand, cold therapy can numb the pain and reduce swelling, as exposure to cold can make your blood vessels tighten, reducing blood flow to the area that reduces swelling. It also interrupts the pain signal and provides medication-free relief.

In a nutshell:

Trigger finger can significantly impact finger and thumb movement and can cause discomfort and stiffness. However, by recognizing the symptoms like finger locking, tenderness, and decreased mobility at earlier stage you can easily cure this condition without surgery. There is list of ways to treat trigger finger without surgery that are mentioned above such as resting, taping, massage, medications, corticosteroid injections, and hot/cold therapy. So, it is better to start the treatment as soon as possible to preserve mobility in your finger.