Tendonitis!? I need advice badly

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tjmaser - 11 Mar 2004 23:38 GMT

I had tendonitis in my right hand about a few weeks ago, but am in a
very intense art school (we draw almost 12 hours a day), so I
immobilized it and iced it a few times a day but continued to work
with it. I think it may have worsened and have recently switched to my
left hand, but I think I may have contacted tendonitis in my left also
in the previous week (I've found what caused it in both my hands, but
now drawing a lot still aggravates it). Just exactly how severe is
this? I'm not sure what I should be doing now? I am treating them both
as usual, but what should I do? I'm really worried about both my
wrists, should I ask for medical leave or something? Should I be
considering stopping all my classes to let it heal immediately? No one
else seems to be freaking out about this when I tell them, but it is
freaking me out because it is progressively getting worse (or not
healing at all), and I don't know what I should do? Please give me
some advice. My semester still has 10 weeks left to burn. I realize it
needs rest to heal, but should I just work through the remaing
semester, dump my classes, ask my teachers for time off? Thank you so
much for anyone's time or perspective or anything. Sorry just to
appear out of nowhere and bum rush people for advice, but this has
been driving me nuts for the past week.

-TJ

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William A. Noyes - 16 Mar 2004 06:17 GMT

It has been my observation that tendonitis tends to be
a chronic problem.

Consider the following quote: "Episodes of tenosynovitis are
usually self-limiting, resolving over a period of weeks or months.
The incidence of recurrence, however, is high."

However, this seeming self-limiting aspect is
IMHO as much a product of intervention
with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as
anything else. The book says rest will help.
The problem is worsened with aging as
the loss of elasticity in tissues is a product
of aging which lends to additional microtears.
One theory says that microtears in the
connective tissue initiate an inflammatory process.
Further, calcification frequently occurs in these
sites in association with inflammation which results
in a chronic problem. Perhaps you need to change
your style of doing things or your occupational
goals.

NSAIDs are a rather nasty though
quite useful class of drugs.

Not quite sober........
....William A. Noyes

> I had tendonitis in my right hand about a few weeks ago, but am in a
> very intense art school (we draw almost 12 hours a day), so I
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
>
> -TJ

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